A Certain Sense of Déjà Vu
by goddessofshadows7212
Summary: After rescuing a hauntingly familiar girl on the streets, Accelerator finds himself being thrust into a world that he never expected to be in. A world that centers not on science, but something else completely. Carefully hidden secrets once in the dark meet the light as his past is uncovered, and he must accept his destiny. UNDERGOING REWRITE
1. The Rescue

**Hey guys! This is my first story (well, my first story in a while), and my first story on To Aru Majutsu no Index. I haven't read the manga or the light novels, so bear with me if I get anything wrong. This takes place after Index II ends, and focuses on one of my favourite characters, Accelerator. I still have no idea if I'm going to make it AcceleratorxOC, so you can decide. Anyways, have fun reading!**

"About time I got out of here," muttered Accelerator under his breath as he stepped out of Yomikawa's apartment and into the warm summer night. Of course, he actually had no reason to be outside-except for the fact he couldn't sleep with Last Order's constant shifting on his bed when she snuck onto his bed to sleep with him this night. She had actually kicked him a couple times in her sleep, but he didn't want to wake her up lest he had to deal with the cranky side of her. He checked the time on a nearby clock.2:15 AM. He walked in a random direction away from the apartment, his metal crutch clanking beside him. Even though it was pretty late, a lot of people were still scattered around outside, minding their own business, so Accelerator chose to stroll towards a somewhat abandoned area in Academy City.

Walking around also gave him an opportunity to think about the girl that was currently and constantly haunting his usual dreamless sleep for days now. He had a feeling she was connected to his frustratingly-blank past, but he had no idea how and why. In his dream, he was running towards the girl-chasing her? She had dark blue hair, playful sapphire blue eyes, a blue hoodie, and shorts. She was always out of reach, and as he was finally about to catch up with her, she disappeared. He always woke up afterwards, with Yoshikawa always commenting later that his eyes had a haunted look in them. He had always denied the fact vehemently, declaring that he wouldn't look all haunted from one dream. Yoshikawa had always given him a secretive look that let him know she knew something, but she never told him anything, no matter how much he asked.

As he passed a dark alley, he heard a gunshot ring out, and then a deafening scream pierced the night sky, which was cut off abruptly. Accelerator, sensing trouble, turned his powers on with the choker. He knew 30 minutes could pass extremely quickly, so he had to hurry. By instinct, he ran into the alley, where he could easily make out two or three people under a dim streetlight. As he quietly got closer, he saw two men and an unconscious girl, with obvious bruises and other scrapes all over her body. Watching on, the men laughed contemptuously and moved on, completely unaware of the white-haired Level 5 behind them, about to spring into action. As the two rounded a bend in the alley, they saw a figure standing casually on the relatively high wall.

"Now, what are you two doing here late at night? Assaulting girls and leaving them unconscious to die?"

"Who the hell are you, you brat?' One of the men growled, pulling out a gun.

"Huh? You're asking me who _I_ am?" Laughing maniacally, Accelerator jumped down from the wall and landed without a sound, sporting his wide, sadistic grin. As he slowly advanced closer to the duo, they quickly noticed the distinctive albino-white skin and the messy white hair, giving away his identity instantly.

"It's that level 5, Accelerator!"

"Get away, now!"

"No, no, you won't get off so easily for calling me a brat. It's been so long since I got to have some fun!"

As the men tried to run away, Accelerator lunged, punching one in the gut and sending him flying, where he crashed against the brick wall and slumped unconscious, blood pouring from a wound on the back of his head. The other one shot three bullets at Accelerator, who redirected them onto the man's body, but for some reason, they all missed.

 _I know my redirection was accurate. How did the bullets not hit him? Forget it; I'll just shoot him without using my abilities._ Pulling out his own gun, Accelerator quickly put three bullets into non-fatal places on the man's body, making him scream in pain and drop his gun, and then stepped on his back, flattening the man to the ground.

"I'll make your death slow and painful," Accelerator snarled, "but first, why were you and your little accomplice assaulting a girl this late?"

Fearing for his life, the man quickly stuttered out a few lines.

"W-we're level 0 mercenaries, hired by a group of scientists who told us to track down this girl who escaped their labs. We were under strict orders to not kill her but to incapacitate her, since the scientists planned to pick her up afterwards. Her powers are that of a level 5, and her identity is unknown to all the civilians in Academy City."

 _An unknown level 5? And another group of scientists? What the hell is going on?_ thought Accelerator. No matter, he had to finish his interrogation. "How did you manage to incapacitate her then?"

"The scientists gave us a device that nullifys esper powers when we carry it around on our body. Also, if it touches any esper level 1 or above, they will not be able to use their powers for the next 3 days. They gave us the only one, so I carried it. We were able to incapacitate the girl afterwards."

 _Well, so much for killing him by changing the direction of the blood flow in his body,_ Accelerator grumbled internally.

"Is that all you can tell me?" He growled, getting off the man and hauling him up by his collar. "I may not be able to kill you with my ability, but I can still shoot you."

"T-that's all I know! I don't even know the girl's name or her ability! Please, don't kill me! Pl-" His pleas were abruptly cut off with a _BANG._

"Time to call Yoshikawa," muttered Accelerator as he replaced the gun within his outfit, blood now splattering his white shirt. He kicked the dead body to one side, near the other man. The unconscious man had yet to stir, so Accelerator decided to leave him alone so he could run off back to the scientists and report what happened.

Turning off the choker, he retrieved his crutch, and pulled out his cell.

"Oi, Yoshikawa, get an ambulance over here. There's a girl who's been assaulted. I killed one guy and left the other unconscious. Apparently, she escaped from a lab. Plus, the two guys were level 0 mercenaries." Giving her his address, he hung up.

As an afterthought, he walked back to the dead man and plucked the nullifying device out of his pocket. It looked like a taser, but the words on the side clearly said _DEVICE TO NULLIFY ESPER POWERS._ Accelerator turned it off and stuffed it into his own jeans pocket.

Walking back to the lit alley, he cautiously lifted up the semi-conscious girl and draped her right arm over his shoulder, where she let out an involuntary cry of pain. Muttering a quick sorry under his breath. Accelerator gritted his teeth and carefully half-led, half-carried her to the exit of the alley and onto the main street, which was not an easy thing to do while he used his crutch.

"W-what...is...going...on?" the girl mumbled, apparently now awake. "Everything hurts...what happened?"

"Do you remember anything?" Accelerator asked as he gently set the girl onto a bench. He was never this gentle with others besides Last Order, but he knew worse could happen if he was his usual prickly uncaring self.

"Running away from the prison...getting beaten by the two guys...they shot me as well...who are you?"

"Accelerator."

The girl's eyes widened. "The strongest and famous level 5?"

"Yeah. What's your name?"

The girl blinked. "I-I'm.." was all she managed to say before she fainted. Her head was about to hit the hard bench before Accelerator caught her and laid her down gently. Now that they were under a streetlight, he could study her features better. Her skin was as pale as his, and she had dark blue hair in a messy ponytail. A black eye was beginning to form on her left eye, not to mention there was a bleeding cut running down one cheek. As he scanned her body for more injuries, he saw a gun wound on her right shoulder, and bloodstains in random places all over her body. She looked extremely familiar, but Accelerator couldn't place where he saw her before.

After a few minutes, an ambulance pulled up. Surprisingly, Yoshikawa was in the back, typing away madly in her computer, pausing briefly to give him a quick nod. After the paramedics loaded the girl onto a stretcher and strapped her down onto the surprisingly large back of the ambulance, they let him get on to talk with Yoshikawa.

"How are you here, Yoshikawa?"

"Easy, told them I was your guardian. Besides, I had to tell you what I found out about the girl after I did some hacking."

"Any idea who she is? Is she from the same group of scientists who trained me?"

Yoshikawa set the laptop down and turned to face him, her face completely serious.

"She is from a different branch of the same scientists that trained you. Except the fact that this group is way more vicious."

"How?"

"I'll tell you when we get back to the apartment." Accelerator wanted to press her further, but he decided it wasn't a good idea, judging from her tone of voice.

"Did you find out her name?"

"Tsukiko Shizuka. It'll take some more hacking to find her level and her power." Saying that, Yoshikawa turned back to her computer and started typing madly again.

"By the way, Yoshikawa, I interrogated one of the mercenaries before killing him. He says she's a level 5. Oh, and the scientists created some device that nullifys esper powers if you carry it around, and it will keep any esper from using their powers for three days if the device touches them." Taking the device from his pocket, he tossed it to Yoshikawa. She caught it, and scrutinized it closely.

"Amazing. So they managed to make a mechanical and portable version of Imagine Breaker."

"Imagine Breaker?"

"The ability of that kid who beat you in that fight during your experiment with the MISAKA-10032 clone. Kamijou Touma, I think. Ability to nullify any type of esper power."

"And that's the only reason he could beat me? Since he could nullify my power?"

"Pretty much. Unless we trained you in close combat as well."

They sat in silence for a while, until Yoshikawa let out a quiet cry of triumph. "Come and take a look at this, Accelerator!" She spun the laptop around so Accelerator could see what she found. His eyes widened and he looked up at Yoshikawa.

"Tell me this isn't a joke. There's no way someone could have two abilities. And abilities no esper has ever manifested!" For there on the screen under the heading ABILITIES, Accelerator could see two abilities for the girl: _FOUR ELEMENT MANIPULATION_ and _TELEPATHY._

They could say no more, as the ambulance had arrived at the hospital.

 _1 hour later_

"Wake up, Accelerator. You can visit Tsukiko-san now." Accelerator jolted awake from his unplanned nap. He had meant to stay awake until the doctors came to tell him and Yoshikawa about the girl's condition, but he had somehow drifted off to sleep. Sitting up, he saw the frog-faced doctor, or better known as Heaven Canceller, looking down at him. Yoshikawa had disappeared somewhere.

"How is she?"

"I see you found another person that you care about other than Last Order." Ignoring Accelerator's indignant splutters of protest, the doctor went on. "She's lucky since you rescued her quickly. Tsukiko-san has multiple injuries, including that nasty gun wound and a few broken ribs as well. It'll take a few days for her to recover completely, and for her powers to return to her as well. Come with me. She's been asking for you ever since she woke up a few minutes ago. Oh, and Yoshikawa-san told me to tell you she went back home to make sure Last Order wasn't home alone, since Yomikawa-san and her Anti-Skill squad went to apprehend that man you left unconscious."

Digesting the information silently, Accelerator followed the doctor down the hallway, where they stopped at a door. The doctor opened the door, and gestured for Accelerator to step in.

"You're not coming in, doctor?"

"No, I have to check on my other patients."

That was a poorly concealed excuse for the doctor to leave them alone, presumably to talk privately. Stepping in the room, Accelerator closed the door and strolled towards the hospital bed, where the girl was lying on the bed, gazing out into the night sky.

 **So yeah, that's the first chapter. Please follow/favourite/review! I'll accept any constructive feedback.**

 **~goddessofshadows7212**


	2. Similar?

**Hello again! Here's chapter 2. Read and review please!**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing besides Tsukiko Shizuka.**

 __ _Previously..._

That was a poorly concealed excuse for the doctor to leave them alone, presumably to talk privately. Stepping in the room, Accelerator closed the door and strolled towards the hospital bed, where the girl was lying on the bed, gazing out into the night sky.

 _Now..._ _  
_

As Accelerator neared the hospital bed, the girl turned her head to face him. A bandage covered half her face, and another was wrapped around the gunshot wound on her shoulder. A wan smile touched her pale face when she saw him.

"I never got to say thanks for rescuing me. So, thanks. Is there anything I can do to repay you?"

"You barely know me, and you already want to repay me?" Accelerator's lips twitched up into a half-smirk.

The tips of the girl's ears turned red. "It's the least I can do for you since you saved my life."

Accelerator was silent for a while. And then the conversation with Yoshikawa in the ambulance came to him. "Actually, there is one thing you can do to repay me. Tell me your story."

"Story as in my life story?"

"Yeah."

"Well, there isn't much to say. You probably know my name is Tsukiko Shizuka already, but it isn't my real name. That's the name the scientists gave me. I don't remember anything from before I was 10 years old. For some reason, my esper ability was naturally element manipulation. I think that's why the scientists took me in, to study my genetics and to train my powers, which basically mean experimentation. A few days ago, they did some experiment on me and that gave me my telepathy ability. It's not normal telepathy. I can communicate with other people's minds, and I can read their minds as well. Fearing my power after that, they tried to kill me. The nullifying device wasn't finished, so they set off a bomb in the room I was kept in. Unfortunately for them, I read their thoughts and escaped just before the bomb went off. After that, I blasted a hole in the building and ran off. I hid in alleys and crowded places for a few days until today, where the two guys snuck up on me. And you know the rest."

"How did you know about me, then?"

"I was never allowed outside of the lab, but information was implanted in my head about Academy City. A lot of information seemed to be devoted to you."

"Me?"

"About the Level 6 Shift project, your ability, and your current condition."

"So you know I killed over 10 000 clones in cold blood to try and achieve Level 6?"

"Yeah. But you still rescued Last Order and took a bullet to the head to save her, hence your condition right now."

They sat in silence for a while. On the bedside table, the clock read 5:00 AM. Already, faint vestiges of pink light were painting the east side of the city, chasing away the dark night. Suddenly, the silence was broken by a cellphone ringing. Cursing under his breath for not setting the phone to silent, Accelerator fished the phone out of his pocket and pressed the "Answer" button.

"Are you still at the hospital, Accelerator?" It was Yoshikawa.

"Yeah."

"Well, mind staying there a little longer? Yomikawa's not back yet, and I can't leave Last Order alone. I can pick you up at 9, or you can take a taxi home right now."

"I don't have enough money on me right now for a taxi."

"Well, I guess you have to stay at the hospital for 4 hours, or you can walk home."

"Fine." With that, Accelerator hung up. He got up from the chair and stretched, before retrieving his crutch. "Well, I might as well go home. I've got nothing to do here for 4 more hours. See you around, Tsukiko. I'll visit.

"Bye, Accelerator." With that, he walked out of her room, closing the door behind him.

 _30 minutes later_

Accelerator unlocked the door of the apartment and stepped in, quietly closing the door behind him. Removing his shoes, he walked over to his room, taking a look inside. To his chagrin, Last Order was right in the middle of his bed, sleeping peacefully. _I can't sleep in my room without waking her up. I'll settle for the couch then._ Closing the door, he stepped carefully over to the couch where he lay down and folded his arms behind his head, falling asleep in a matter of minutes.

 _9:00 AM_

Accelerator woke to the sound of a very energetic Last Order.

"'Ohayo, Accelerator-san! Wake up!' Says MISAKA as MISAKA shakes him awake."

"Stop shaking me, you brat. I'm awake." Accelerator sat up and pushed Last Order off him.

"Had a nice sleep, Accelerator?" Yoshikawa asked.

"Better than the first half of the night."

"Well, I still have some files I need to organize, and Yomikawa is at work. Why don't you take Last Order out for breakfast? After that, you two might as well go grocery shopping. There's barely any food left in the fridge."

"'MISAKA wants to go to the underground mall later to look around,' says MISAKA as MISAKA looks at Yoshikawa-san pleadingly."

"Don't I get any say in this? I wanted to go back to the hospital and visit Tsukiko-san. I wanted to ask her more about her abilities."

"Fine, I'll work at the restaurant. I'll take Last Order to the mall after that and you can visit the hospital."

"'Yay! Yay! MISAKA can go to the mall!' yells MISAKA as MISAKA jumps with joy."

"Shut up, you brat. I don't get why you have to go to the mall today." Accelerator grumbled. "Not like you've heard about some new store being opened or anything."

"'MISAKA just wants to go to the mall,' says MISAKA as MISAKA pleads with Accelerator-san."

"Fine. But if you disappear again, I'm not going to go find you."

"Alright then, let's go. We'll take the car."

 _At the restaurant_

"'Wow, look at all the items on the menu!' Says MISAKA as MISAKA looks at the menu."

"Accelerator, are you going to eat anything?" asked Yoshikawa.

"I'll take coffee."

The waiter came, and they ordered. A few minutes later, the waiter came back with steaming plates of food, which Last Order dug into eagerly. After a few minutes of silence, Last Order stopped eating, and looked up at Accelerator with a thoughtful look on her face.

"Why are you looking at me like that, you brat?"

"'When we were back at the apartment, MISAKA heard Accelerator-san mention someone called Tsukiko-san. Who is she?' Asks MISAKA as she stares at him seriously."

"Just a girl I rescued off the streets. She has two abilities. Her full name is Tsukiko Shizuka."

"'Accelerator-san met the Silent Child of the Moon?' asks MISAKA as MISAKA stares at him in surprise."

"You know the girl?"

"'All the MISAKA clones know her. Information about her has been inputted into the MISAKA network.' says MISAKA as MISAKA gives Accelerator-san a matter-of-fact look."

"What do you know about her then?"

"'There is very little information on her. Her abilities are telepathy and element manipulation-"

"I know _that,_ " muttered Accelerator.

"-and her code name is Silent Child of the Moon,'" continued Last Order as if she never heard him. "'Which is just her name that she was given. It is suspected that she may be another Level 6 candidate. That's all the MISAKA network has to say.' explains MISAKA rather seriously."

Yoshikawa let out a soft whistle. "Another Level 6 project. I never knew everybody was that desperate for a Level 6."

"You never knew this and you say they were a branch of the scientists that worked on me?"

Yoshikawa looked up from her laptop. "Accelerator, it's complicated. They are a branch of the original group, but they formed long before we even considered you a test subject for Level 6. They had plans of their own and their own candidate, which they put into plan years before we started the Level 6 Shift Project."

"And that candidate is Tsukiko?"

"Yes. It seems like a coincidence, actually. Before we took any of you in, you two-" At this, Yoshikawa stopped, with a look that said _I've said too much_ flitting across her face.

"What were you going to say?"

"Nothing important."

"What were you going to say about Tsukiko and me? Is this about my past? Tell me, Yoshikawa!"

"You'll know soon."

"Don't give me this bullshit!"

"Language, Accelerator. There's a child here." Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Yoshikawa said, "In truth, it's just a tiny piece of information. But, it has great importance to both of your pasts. It's not in my place to tell you, but you will know soon."

"Soon as in how long?"

"Your eighteenth birthday. In a few days, I believe."

" _Fine._ " Accelerator snarled. Why was everybody keeping information from him? He drank down the last of his coffee and slammed the cup down. "I'm leaving now."

"Which means we'd better head off as well? Last Order, hurry up and finish."

"'Actually, MISAKA doesn't want to go to the mall now,' says MISAKA as MISAKA finishes her scrambled eggs."

"Then where do you want to go? Back home?"

"'MISAKA wants to go to the hospital with Accelerator-san. This could be a good opportunity for more information of Tsukiko Shizuka-san to be spread across the MISAKA network.' says MISAKA as MISAKA states a fact."

"Alright, alright. I hope you don't mind us coming along, Accelerator."

"I do mind very much," Accelerator muttered under his breath, but he got his crutch and strode out of the restaurant. After paying the bill, Yoshikawa and Last Order hurried after him into the parking lot.

 _At the hospital_

The frog-faced doctor met them in the waiting room. "I suppose you're going to visit Tsukiko-san?" Accelerator nodded. "Well, come along. She just woke up. She's pretty much healed up now. Amazing what can happen in a few hours."

They followed the doctor down winding hallways until he opened a door and ushered them in. Shizuka was standing at the window, gazing outside at the city. At the sound of the door opening. Her face showed clear surprise when her eyes landed on the trio. "Hello. What can I do for you three?" It was a flat introduction, but really, there wasn't much to say.

"Sorry for coming in without letting the doctor tell you that you had visitors, but Last Order and Yoshikawa want to ask you a few questions." Accelerator didn't sound very sorry, as he pulled out the chair from the table and sat down.

"It's alright." Shizuka went back to her bed and sat, drawing her legs up under her chin. She nodded at Last Order and Yoshikawa. "I suppose you want to know everything about me."

They nodded. Sighing, Shizuka explained the exact same facts she had said to Accelerator earlier.

"I knew it. Another Level 6 project. What I don't get is why you don't remember anything from before you were 10. Do you know yourself?" Yoshikawa asked.

"The scientists said it was amnesia, but I suspect they erased my memories upon taking me to the lab."

"'MISAKA thinks Tsukiko-san is very similar to Accelerator-san in some ways,' says MISAKA as MISAKA states an opinion."

Accelerator glanced at Last Order with a barely concealed look of surprise and opened his mouth to reply, but Shizuka beat him to it.

"How so?"

"'Well, both Tsukiko-san and Accelerator-san were both candidates for Level 6. They also have unique and powerful abilities, and both seem to be missing memories from their pasts.' states MISAKA as MISAKA lists down all the facts."

"I remember my past, brat. I never did find out my real name, though. Not that I regret it, though."

Shizuka let a small sigh of dejection. "I just realized I have nowhere to go or live after I get out of the hospital."

"'Can she stay with us?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA looks pleadingly at Yoshikawa-san."

"I don't think Yomikawa will object. Luckily, we have a spare bedroom."

"Oh, thank you so much!"

"Just what I need, another girl. I'm surrounded by females." Accelerator complained. Everybody else in the room ignored him.

"Well, I'll get everything ready, and we'll pick you up when you get out of the hospital. When is that?"

"Two days. Thanks again."

"No problem. We should go now."

"See you all in two days, then."

The trio left the room, with Accelerator still grumbling about being the only boy in the midst of females.

Shizuka watched their retreating backs and the door close. She lay down on the bed and gazed at the ceiling. "When will you know the truth, Accelerator?" She whispered in the silence.


	3. Moving In

**Alright, here's chapter 3! This chapter progresses rather quickly. Sorry if you can't keep up, PM me if you need any details.**

It had been two days since Accelerator, Last Order, and Yoshikawa had seen Shizuka. During that time, they had been helping Yomikawa clean out the apartment and get the spare bedroom ready for Shizuka to move in. The room had been aired out and new bedspreads covered the once-bare bed. Yomikawa moved the boxes full of her possessions she had originally stored in the spare bedroom and stuck them in the room she and Yoshikawa shared, annoying Yoshikawa to a great deal. Accelerator spent the days keeping Last Order out of trouble, helping Yomikawa move her boxes, and much to his irritation-doing the grocery shopping.

Finally, the day came to pick up Shizuka arrived. The four of them piled into the car and drove to the hospital. Once they got there, they found the frog-faced doctor waiting for them. Shizuka was right behind him, with a smile on her face. Her blue hair was up in a neat ponytail and her sapphire eyes were sparkling. Her outfit-or the only outfit she had-was a ragged blue hoodie and jean shorts. When she saw Accelerator and Last Order, she waved to them. Last Order jumped out of the car and ran to Shizuka.

"'Hi, Tsukiko-san!' says MISAKA as MISAKA hugs Tsukiko-san's legs." It was only a few days since Last Order had met Shizuka, but the little girl had instantly taken a liking to Shizuka.

"Hey there, Last Order. Don't hug me too hard or else I'll lose my balance!" Last Order released her hold on Shizuka and smiled. Behind her, Accelerator, Yoshikawa, and Yomikawa stepped out of the car and approached the little group.

"Ready to move in with us?" Yomikawa asked. "It might be crowded, but it's one merry party-with the exception of the grumpy child over there."

"I'm not grumpy! Nor am I a child!" Ignoring Accelerator's complaints, Shizuka bowed to Yomikawa. "Thank you so much for letting me move in, even though you guys barely know me."

"Well, we really can't leave you on the streets now, can we?"

"'Can we go now?' asks MISAKA as MISAKA taps her foot impatiently."

"Have some patience for once, brat."

Yoshikawa laughed at their bantering. "Come on, let's go. We can show Tsukiko-san around Academy City while we're at it."

The frog faced doctor interrupted just then. "I suggest that you always go out accompanied by someone, Tsukiko-san. The scientists are most likely still searching for you, and if anyone in the public hears about you or your ability, I doubt you'll be safe."

"Alright, doctor."

"Oh, and one more thing. Stay on your guard at all times once the date of your eighteenth birthday comes to pass."

"Why?"

"It's not in my place to tell you. I believe the same will go for Accelerator." The doctor gave Accelerator a knowing look, but Accelerator scoffed and looked away with a deep scowl on his face.

"When will _someone_ tell me, or Tsukiko, what is going on!?"

"Again, not in my place to tell you."

Accelerator growled and walked back to the car. "Well, if we're done with the enigmatic comments, can we go now?"

"Alright, alright." Yomikawa led Shizuka to the car, while Last Order and Yoshikawa followed closely after. They all got in, and drove off. The frog faced doctor turned and walked slowly back to the hospital. He muttered something under his breath:"It is almost time for the truth to be known."

 _In the car_

"Alright, why did I get squished in the middle?"

"'It's proper manners to give girls the window seats,' answers MISAKA as MISAKA looks outside the window."

"You're totally making that one up, you brat." It was true that the backseat of the car was very small, so the two espers and one clone were squished. Accelerator had a bad time of it, as he got squished from both sides. "I'm so tempted to use my reflection," he grumbled, just loudly enough for the adults to hear.

"Do that and you'll probably kill both girls and destroy my car. And then you're going to pay for a new one." Yomikawa was completely straight-faced.

"Fine, fine."

They stopped at the underground mall. Yoshikawa turned her head to look at the trio. "Tsukiko-san, do you have any other clothes besides the ones you're wearing right now?"

"Unfortunately, no."

"Alright then, we'll take you to the underground mall to buy some clothes for you. Accelerator and Last Order, do you want to come along?"

"'MISAKA wants to come!' exclaims MISAKA as she states her answer to the question."

"No way in hell."

"Well, you have to go to the mall with us, Accelerator, but you can stay somewhere else while we're in Seventh Mist."

"Fine. As long as I don't have to babysit the brat."

"Where are you going to stay then, Accelerator?"

"Hopefully a place where none of you bother me."

 _In the mall_

While the quartet of girls beelined towards Seventh Mist, Accelerator strolled around the mall, not really caring where he was heading. He occasionally looked around to find anything of interest, but there was nothing that held his attention for more than a few seconds. At least until he saw the group of men in lab coats after nearly half an hour of aimlessly walking around the mall. One of the men raised his head and looked Accelerator straight in the eyes. Accelerator nearly flinched, but he held his ground and looked back steadily. The man smiled cheerfully and turned his head back to his group.

Accelerator went over to the nearest bench and sat down, head spinning from who he just saw. It was Kihara Gensei, a scientist intensely obsessed with level 6. With him was the assortment of scientists who had took him to the Special Abilities Institute. But why would they be in the mall? Suddenly, Accelerator got up and rushed to Seventh Mist as fast as he could in his present condition. He knew they were here to find Shizuka. Everybody would be in deep trouble if he didn't alert the girls in time.

 _In Seventh Mist_

Accelerator burst into the clothing store and beelined towards the counter, where a middle-aged employee was reading. As he approached, the employee looked up with a practiced smile.

"Can I help you, sir?"

"Where are the four females that came in half an hour ago?"

"They're in the fitting rooms; I suggest you don't go i-"

Accelerator had already rushed to the fitting rooms. Sighing, the woman returned to her reading.

Once he reached the fitting rooms, he yanked open the nearest door, revealing a nearly-naked Shizuka. She shrieked and hurriedly covered herself up, but it was too late. Accelerator forced a blank look onto his face despite that he walked into a very embarrassing situation.

"What the hell are you doing here? And why didn't you knock?"

"Why didn't you lock the door?"

"I _thought_ I locked it, until you came bursting in! And turn away already, you pervert!"

By this time, the other three females had gathered around the room.

"Why are you here, Accelerator?

"We need to get away now. I saw a group of scientists. Among them were Kihara Gensei and other scientists who had taken me to the Special Abilities Institute. I think they're looking for Tsukiko."

Shizuka swore under her breath. "I should've known they put trackers on my clothes." She quickly covered herself with a jacket and examined her original clothing. Eventually, she found a camouflaged tracker on her shorts. It was impossible to cut out without ruining them. Shizuka growled. "These were my favourite shorts, dammit!" With that, a small fire materialized in her hand and she promptly burnt the pair of shorts. "We need to leave now. If they find me, they'll do anything to get me back. Even if it means killing innocent civilians just to keep everything secret."

Yoshikawa nodded grimly. Taking control, she started directing the others. "We have to separate so as to not look obvious. Aiho, buy the clothes. Get out first and get the car ready. I'll come with you. Accelerator, you take Tsukiko and Last Order and get out after we do. Take an alternate route and make sure the scientists don't see you. Last Order, don't cause any trouble."

Everyone nodded and went off to complete the instructions. Shizuka hid her distinctive hair under a cap and strode out with Accelerator and Last Order flanking her on both sides. They went in the opposite way from where the two women went, and then doubled back, heading towards the exit. None of them spoke a word. They blended in with the crowd pretty well, with no one giving them a second glance. Finally, they got out into the parking lot, where the car was up and running and the adults waiting for them inside.

Yoshikawa let out a relieved sigh. "That was close. Aiho and I nearly bumped into them."

"'Nobody noticed us,' says MISAKA as MISAKA reports her situation."

"Actually, they noticed us, but they just didn't pay enough attention." Shizuka had a mischievous smile on her face.

"I'm going to guess you used your telepathic ability and somehow controlled their minds, Tsukiko."

"Guilty as charged, Accelerator. My telepathic ability isn't just being able to communicate with other people's minds, I can control a large group of minds plus I can read and control someone's mind if I make physical contact with him or her."

"That's one powerful ability. How do we know you haven't mind-controlled us yet?"

"You could probably feel me taking a hold of your mind and you can do nothing but look on helplessly. I didn't really control the crowd's minds; it was just the subtle suggestion of not noticing us."

"You seem to know a lot about this ability despite saying you only acquired it for a few days." Accelerator observed.

Shizuka shrugged. "I don't know myself. Instincts?"

"'Actually, MISAKA wants Tsukiko-san to demonstrate her mind control.' States MISAKA as MISAKA expresses her curiosity."

"Alright then. Accelerator, mind being an example?"

"No way. The brat wanted you to demonstrate, go do it on her."

"'MISAKA won't mind,' says MISAKA as MISAKA states her opinion."

"Hold out your hand then. It's perfectly painless."

Shizuka gripped Last Order's hand and closed her eyes. Suddenly, Last Order's eyes glazed over and she started poking Accelerator hard in the arm. Accelerator shifted away to avoid the unending pokes.

"Tsukiko, stop that already."

"That was fun though." However, she let go of Last Order's hand. The young girl's eyes un-glazed and she grinned happily.

"'That was so fun! Although I didn't like that cold grip on MISAKA's mind.' Exclaims MISAKA as MISAKA recalls what happened.

"Only because you got to poke me, brat. You made the brat poke me on purpose, didn't you, Tsukiko?" He addressed the last part to Shizuka, who had an evil grin on her face.

"That's barely half my revenge for you walking in on me in the changing room, pervert."

"Not like it was intentional. Again, why didn't you lock the damn door?"

"I thought I did!"

"I so believe you. And I'm not a pervert!"

"Enough with the quarrel, lovebirds. We're at the apartment."

"I-he-"

"-she"

"WE'RE NOT LOVEBIRDS!"

Ignoring the loud protests and splutters, the adults calmly got out of the car and opened the backseat door. Accelerator had another blank look on his face that was bordering on rage and Shizuka's face was bright red.

Oblivious to the teenagers, Last Order hopped out of the car and glanced back at the two espers, who were looking away from each other.

"'MISAKA thinks that Accelerator-san and Tsukiko-san should get out of the car right now.' Says MISAKA as MISAKA looks at the two."

Without a word, Accelerator got out of the car and walked into the apartment. Shizuka followed after, making sure to stay a good distance away from the white-haired boy. Yomikawa stopped her at the door, leaning in close to whisper some words in her ear.

"Try to make up with Accelerator and be friends. You may be the only person around his age that doesn't hate him or fear him. I don't know much about your pasts, but Kikyou says that you two would be better off on good terms."

Shizuka sighed. "I know. I still feel like I owe a debt to him since he saved my life. Still, he walked in on me like that!"

"Let's just dismiss this as an accident. Luckily for you, he never reacts whenever he's stuck in that kind of situation. He's going to be the stubborn one if you want to make up with him. Just be on good terms with him."

"Okay."

Yomikawa smiled. "Come on; let's take a tour of my apartment."


	4. Shared Birthdays and an Amusement Park

**Hey! Chapter 4 is up! This is definitely my longest chapter yet. Anyways, I'm extremely lacking in my knowledge of rollercoasters, so bear with me because I don't have a single name for any of them.**

 _Previously..._

Yomikawa smiled. "Come on; let's take a tour of my apartment."

 _Now..._

Once they stepped in the apartment, they were greeted with the sight of Last Order watching TV and Yoshikawa preparing food in the kitchen. Accelerator was nowhere to be found.

"Wow, your apartment is so clean!"

"Aiho is always cleaning the place up." Yoshikawa stepped out of the kitchen and smiled at Shizuka and Yomikawa. "You should show Tsukiko her bedroom."

Yomikawa led Shizuka around the TV and to the hallway. "First door to the left is the room I share with Kikyou, second is the bathroom. The first bedroom on the right is Accelerator's room which he shares with Last Order, and the last bedroom is yours. Shizuka entered her new room to find a very clean, but unadorned room. Besides a bed with blue bedspreads, there was a closet and a chest-of-drawers. There was a table and a chair. A clock was on the wall opposite the bed.

Yomikawa looked at the room over Shizuka's shoulder. "It's plain, but we can decorate it later."

"Thanks a lot."

"No problem. Speaking of which, where is Accelerator? I didn't see him in the living room."

On a hunch, Shizuka opened the door to Accelerator's room. He was apparently sleeping, his lanky body stretched out on the bed.

Yomikawa sighed when she looked at the sleeping teen. "It's barely 1:00 in the afternoon and he somehow manages to fall asleep. Mind waking him up, Shizuka?"

"Is there any reason?"

As if on cue, Yoshikawa called, "Lunchtime!"

Yomikawa grinned. "That's your reason."

Shizuka stepped lightly into the darkened room, making sure not to bump into anything. She quietly approached the bed, making no sound. Once she reached the bed, she placed her hands on his shoulders and shook him hard. "Time to wake up, sleepyhead."

Accelerator woke to the sight of Shizuka leaning over him with a smirk on her face. "About time you woke up. It's lunchtime."

"Did you have to shake me that hard? You nearly dislocated my shoulders."

"Oh, stop whining. It was either that or me dropping a ball of water on your face." As if to prove her point, a ball of water formed in her right hand.

"I get it, I get it. I'm up."

The water disappeared from Shizuka's hand. "We'll wait for you."

"Tch. Give me a few minutes. You guys can eat without me."

As Shizuka went out of the room, she heard Accelerator mumbling under his breath. "I really have no idea which ability of hers I should watch out for more." She smirked and closed the door behind her.

As soon as she left, Accelerator let out a long sigh and lay back down. From the moment he had rescued her, he knew she was the girl in his dreams. But he had no idea why she appeared in his dreams. Was there even any relevance to his dreams? In a short burst of rage, he punched the pillow hard. What was Yoshikawa hiding about his past? Despite what he told Last Order, he really didn't remember anything from his past, except for all the times at school when he was bullied constantly. Not like the attacks ever hit him.

"I give up; I'm not going to find out anything like this." With that, he swung his legs over the bed and onto the ground and picked up his crutch, striding to the living room.

The girls had already started to eat. Yoshikawa had quickly prepared some instant ramen. At the sound of the crutch clicking on the floor, they all looked up at the boy esper, who promptly looked away.

"Stop staring at me."

"Alright, alright. There's extra ramen in the kitchen for you if you're hungry."

Accelerator went into the kitchen and came out with a bowl half full with ramen. He sat in the empty spot next to Last Order and chewed methodically, not bothering to look up at the others from his bowl. An awkward silence had settled over the table. After everybody had finished, they stuck the bowls in the dishwasher and resumed staring at each other in the living room. The silence was broken by a cellphone ringing. Glad to have an interruption, Yoshikawa pulled the phone out of her pocket and went into the hallway.

"Hello?"

"Actually, we shouldn't be communicating via cell phone. Why don't you use the resources I gave you so many years ago?"

Yoshikawa gave a start. The last time she heard that voice, it was when Accelerator had been taken into the Special Abilities Institute. That voice had requested her to not do what they did with Accelerator, but she had no authority to stop the others. The voice had warned her horrible things would happen and twist the memories and very emotions of the young esper, and the predictions were true.

Yoshikawa went into her bedroom and pulled out the box that contained the things the owner of the voice had given to her. She pulled out a piece of paper and folded it in half, before opening it.

"You sound older. Why do you need to use this and not a phone?"

"I thought you knew Aleister Crowley could eavesdrop on any cellphone conversation, and you know that the things I talk about to you must be kept secret even from him, which is extremely hard. Besides, it has been a few years. Of course my voice would change over the years."

"What are you going to tell me about this time, then?"

"You know Accelerator's eighteenth birthday is coming up soon. So is Shizuka's. I thought to give you a word of warning before their birthdays dawn."

"They share a birthday?"

"Yes." The voice emanating from the paper held just a bit of amusement amid the usual monotony.

"What am I supposed to expect?"

"Hmm...a coma-like sleep, maybe convulsions, and if their minds can't take it, death. After all, their minds will have to adjust under the influx of so many memories." The voice sounded extremely amused now.

"You sound like you want them to die. I didn't think you would be this amused at them dying."

"Eh, stop overreacting. I was messing with you. They're strong enough. One last warning: do not touch Accelerator or Shizuka. Accelerator in particular. The result would not be nice."

"Is that all you have to say?"

"You might as well alert Yomikawa. Plus you should tell the two what would happen. They've been in the dark for far too long."

"You're the one who told me not to tell Accelerator anything!"

"I changed my mind. The least both teens can know is what will happen."

Yoshikawa had a sudden thought. "Won't Aleister Crowley sense our conversation? I may have switched from my cell but he can still sense things like this.

"There are methods that can keep even him from listening in on conversations, whether through phone or other means. And this is very subtle; he won't even sense it. Goodbye, Yoshikawa Kikyou. The truth is approaching the light."

Without warning, the paper turned to dust and floated off into the air. Incredibly shaken now, Yoshikawa took a few deep breaths and sat down at the edge of the bed. The first time she met that person, that person had told her what Accelerator was and the role he would play. The person had appeared to her shortly after Accelerator was born, and asked her to watch over the boy, also giving her the resources needed for contact in case cellphones couldn't be used.

"Oi, Kikyou. Who was it?" Yomikawa came into the room and suddenly stopped, seeing the look on Yoshikawa's face. "Was it..."

"Yes." Ever since they moved in, Yoshikawa had told Yomikawa about the mysterious person so she could have somebody to talk to about everything.

Yomikawa also saw the box on the ground. "Secret conversation?"

"Yes."

"Tell me what happened."

"Not now. Tonight when they're all asleep."

"Fine. Hey, what are we supposed to do for the entire afternoon then?"

"You have the entire day off, right?"

"Yeah."

"We should entertain the kids a bit. Amusement park?"

"Sure, but what if the scientists find Tsukiko again? She may not have a tracker on her, but there are still other ways to track her. Her AIM field is very distinctive."

"We can get Accelerator to keep an eye on her and out for scientists."

"Okay then."

The adults went back to the living room, where Last Order had went back to watching TV. Accelerator was watching Shizuka make an elaborately detailed miniature ice castle on the table. She had added turrets, a drawbridge, and even tiny arrow slits. They didn't notice the adults until Yoshikawa started speaking.

"Since there's nothing for us to do here, we're taking you guys to an amusement park."

Last Order looked at the women. "'We're going to an amusement park?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA tries to hide her excitement."

"Yeah."

"Won't the scientists track me with my AIM field? They probably know where I am already." Shizuka turned the ice back to liquid, and let the water splash back into the cup that was on the table.

"Accelerator will keep an eye out, won't you Accelerator?" Yoshikawa directed the question towards the lanky figure that was looking on with a bored look on his face.

"Tch, whatever."

"I'm only asking you to keep an eye out, not go on kiddie rides or something."

"Fine."

"Come on then, let's go!"

 _In the_ _car_

'Which amusement park are we going to anyways? "

"Academy City's largest amusement park. I forgot the name."

"'MISAKA has never been on a rollercoaster,' says MISAKA as MISAKA hides her nervousness."

"I doubt you're tall enough to go on one, brat."

"Actually, me neither. I was never allowed out of the lab, so I saw very little of the outside world."

"Heh. You're in trouble then, Tsukiko."

"What are you thinking of, Accelerator?"

"I like all the dangerous and extremely terrifying rides. And since I have to keep an eye on you, you're coming with me."

"'Hey, that's not fair! MISAKA can't go on the rollercoasters,' exclaims MISAKA as MISAKA tries to glare at Accelerator."

"Who said I was going to make you go on one, brat?"

Yomikawa sighed. "Break it up already, guys. How about this, Kikyou and I take Last Order around the kiddie rides and Accelerator and Tsukiko can go together on the rollercoasters."

"Aiho, shouldn't one of us go with the teenagers?"

"Don't worry about us, we'll be fine." Shizuka reassured the adults.

"Okay then. Accelerator, remember what we told you back at the apartment."

"I know already. Don't remind me."

Yomikawa drove the car into the parking lot of the amusement park. It took a while to find a spot since practically all the spots were filled. Finally, the car was parked, and the group went inside. Yoshikawa grabbed two maps and handed one to Accelerator.

"It's currently 2:00. Meet us in the parking lot at 7:00. 5 hours should be enough for you to go on all the rollercoasters. Do you have money, Accelerator?"

"Yeah."

"Alright then. Let's go, Last Order."

The adults and Last Order soon disappeared into the crowd, heading in the direction of the kiddie rides. Shizuka turned to Accelerator.

"Which one should we go on first?"

Accelerator looked around. "That one." He pointed at a dangerous looking ride with corkscrew turns and loops.

"It doesn't look too far away. Let's go."

It took around 2 minutes for them to reach the ride, but it took them 20 minutes to reach the front of the line. When they got to the front, a smiling young worker was helping riders into the seats. When the two reached the rollercoaster car, he gave the two a grin.

"Is this your first ride of the day?"

"Yeah."

"A lot of people choose this ride for their first ride. It's a great ride to get the adrenaline pumping. You'll get a nice view at the front of the car. Have fun!" As he was speaking, he pulled down the safety bar and locked in place, then stepped back and gave them a friendly wave.

With a jolt, the cars starting moving. Shizuka grinned in anticipation while Accelerator had the blankest look on his face, but his eyes gleamed with anticipation. The ride sped up, and then all you could hear was screaming as the cars careened wildly at a lightning-fast speed through twists and loops.

 _After_ _the_ _ride_

"Okay, I need to sit for a while."

"Tch. One rollercoaster and you need a break?"

"How come you're not dizzy?"

"This is the one time I'll be thankful for the crutch."

They found an empty bench and sat down. Shizuka closed her eyes and rested, while Accelerator flipped through the map, checking out all the rollercoasters. After five minutes, he stood up.

"Oi, wake up. There's another rollercoaster we're going to try."

"Give me a break, that was my first ever rollercoaster ride."

"Well, too bad. I intend on using the five hours we had to explore all the rollercoasters, not sitting around. This is probably the most fun I've had that did not involve killing people." Accelerator had a tiny smirk on his face that was just a little maniacal.

"Fine, fine."

Accelerator's face suddenly turned serious. "I forgot to tell you something earlier, but now's the better time."

"Why is that?"

"Let's see: the adults aren't here, we're alone and nobody's stalking us right now. Yoshikawa and Yomikawa are going to discuss something related to our eighteenth birthdays tonight."

"Whaaaaat? How do you know?"

"They spoke a little too loudly. I simply directed the vectors of the sound waves in my direction. I couldn't listen to the conversation Yoshikawa had over the phone though."

"And what are you going to do?"

" _We_ are going to eavesdrop tonight."

"Why are you going to include me?"

"Don't you want to know what will happen on my eighteenth birthday, or yours?"

"Okay, but what if we get caught?"

"Can't you use your ability with the elements to keep our movements silent? And if that doesn't work, I'll control the sound wave vectors."

"You seem to have everything planned out."

Accelerator shrugged. "I had plenty of time to think. Now, let's go on another rollercoaster."

 _7:10 pm_

Last Order, Yoshikawa and Yomikawa were waiting for the teens to arrive.

"I wonder what's taking them."

"Oh relax, Kikyou. They're probably walking over right now."

"'Look over there!' Exclaims MISAKA as MISAKA spots Tsukiko-san and Accelerator-san."

"Either the amusement park sells alcohol or they went on too many rollercoasters," Yomikawa observed. Even from a distance, the sun lit up the espers, showing their flushed faces and slightly wobbly walking. Even Accelerator's normally pale face had the slightest tinge of pink, although he'd deny it later. Shizuka was holding a large bag of blue cotton candy.

"I'll go with alcohol. Or they ate too much sugar."

"Shush, Aiho. They're still underage. Besides, Accelerator never eats any sugar unless we sneak it into his meals."

"Not for much longer. Do remember 18 is the drinking age in Academy City."

They fell silent as the pair approached them. Shizuka had the hugest smile on her face and Accelerator's face had its usual blankness, but for the first time, the adults saw his ruby eyes sparkling with genuine excitement.

"Had fun?"

"The most I've ever had my life!" Shizuka exclaimed.

"Well, let's head back now. Aiho, you're making dinner."

"Fine. That means you're driving."

"Alright."

On the route home, Last Order was busy recounting her time at the amusement park, occasionally snatching handfuls of cotton candy from Shizuka.

"'By the way, Accelerator-san, you lied to MISAKA,' says MISAKA as MISAKA tries to be mad at Accelerator-san."

"About what, brat?"

Yoshikawa cut in. "Last Order was tall enough for a few rollercoasters."

"Tch. The brat isn't tall enough for the dangerous ones."

"She will be. And stop eating the cotton candy, Last Order. You'll spoil your dinner."

"You can't exactly tell her to stop, she's eaten it all." Shizuka held up the empty bag so the adults could see.

"Hope you brush your teeth, brat, or else they'll rot off." Accelerator was smirking again. He seemed to be in very high spirits.

"'According to the MISAKA network, teeth don't rot. They get cavities.' Says MISAKA as MISAKA contradicts Accelerator-san."

"We're home. Time to get off." By some stroke of luck, Yoshikawa had arrived at the apartment just in time to stave off the brewing argument. They entered the apartment, where Yomikawa immediately got to cooking.

"Hey, Last Order, do you like puzzles?"

"'Yes, Tsukiko-san!' Says MISAKA as MISAKA tries to hide her enthusiasm."

"I'll make you a puzzle then."

Shizuka filled a bowl of water from the sink and carried it to the living room table.

"'Eh? Tsukiko-san, can't you just make water with your ability?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA tries to figure out the question."

"I don't exactly make water with my ability, I can pull the water molecules out of the air and condense them, creating liquid water. This takes up some energy, so having an actual water source is more convenient."

Last Order nodded slowly, and then gasped in surprise when the water floated up in the air and froze into a rectangle. The rectangle then split into regular shaped puzzle pieces. As the rectangle floated back to the table, it immediately rearranged itself so it turned into a pile of messed up puzzle pieces.

"Alright, here you go. The ice won't melt until you're done."

Last Order immediately got working on the puzzle. Shizuka glanced at Accelerator, and went off to her room. Accelerator followed 5 minutes later, knocking on the door to Shizuka's room.

"Come on in."

He entered and saw Shizuka folding the clothes she had gotten earlier and stuffing them in the chest-of-drawers, and hanging up the jackets and hoodies. When she was done, she looked up at him.

"You struck me as a person who doesn't knock on doors before going in them."

"I've had...experiences."

She raised an eyebrow. "At least you've learned your lesson."

"Tch." Accelerator scoffed and looked around the room.

"Now, what are we going to do tonight?"

"How good is your ability when controlling air?"

"It could be better." As she was speaking, a gust of wind blew around the room and blew the door shut.

"Can you levitate?"

Shizuka promptly rose off the ground in a sitting position, legs dangling in midair. She floated over to Accelerator with a smirk on her face. "I created a solid pocket of air pressure. I'm not using any kind of wind."

"Impressive."

"So, why do you need my abilities for tonight?"

"I'm going to ask you to float us over to the adults' room and eavesdrop on them. That will conceal the sounds of any movements we make. If their conversation is over 30 minutes, I cannot direct the sound wave vectors after that."

"I'd rather that you use your ability than mine. Creating that took a lot out of me. I doubt I can hold up two people for longer than 2 minutes. Air isn't my strongest element."

Accelerator stifled an urge to sigh. "Alright then."

"'Tsukiko-san! MISAKA has finished the puzzle!' calls MISAKA as MISAKA tries to find Tsukiko-san."

Shizuka yelped as her concentration broke from the sudden call and went plummeting to the ground. Suddenly, she landed in someone's arms. Looking up, she saw Accelerator carrying her.

"Tch, be more careful next time." He set her down gently and quickly grabbed his crutch.

"T-Thanks."

"No problem. We might as well find the brat."

The two walked out of the bedroom to the living room, where Last Order was looking with pride at the completed ice puzzle.

 **Ooh, I wonder who the mysterious person is. Anyone care to take a guess? Read and Review please!**

 **~goddessofshadows7212**


	5. Reading the Past Goes Horribly Wrong

**I think there's a plot twist in here. Enjoy!**

Last Order ran up to the two with a huge smile on her face, proudly displaying the completed puzzle on the table.

"Amazing, Last Order! And in such a short time as well!"

"'MISAKA had lots of practice,' says MISAKA as MISAKA smiles with pride."

"Well, did you see the design in the puzzle when you finished it?"

Last Order nodded happily and went over to the table. The completed ice puzzle showed an etching of a beach landscape, with rippling waves and tiny umbrellas on the beach

Accelerator took one glance at the puzzle with an expressionless face. "Not a bad job, brat."

"'Did Accelerator-san just compliment MISAKA?' Asks MISAKA because MISAKA can't believe her ears."

"Yes I did, brat, and I'm not saying it again."

Shizuka laughed. "Come on, Last Order; let's show this to the adults. Yomikawa! Come take a look."

Yomikawa stepped out of the kitchen and headed over to the table. "Did Last Order do this by herself?" Last Order nodded. "Amazing skill. Nice landscape, Tsukiko."

"It wasn't that hard to make. Just needed a little imagination. By the way, where's Yoshikawa?"

"Check our bedroom. She should be in there."

Shizuka went to the adults' bedroom and knocked on the closed door.

"Yoshikawa, Last Order wants to show you something."

"Okay, give me a second."

Shizuka heard a muffled thump and the sound of something sliding across the floor, and then Yoshikawa appeared at the door.

"What was all that noise?"

"Don't worry, I just dropped something. Did Last Order want to show me something?"

"Yeah. I made an ice puzzle for her and she finished it pretty quickly. She's pretty proud of herself right now."

"Okay then, I'll take a look."

Yoshikawa went past Shizuka into the living room. Shizuka took a quick peek in the room. She saw a metal looking object poking out of the space underneath a bed. Leaning closer but not entering the room, she saw strange markings on the object.

 _I_ _wonder_ _what_ _that_ _is,_ Shizuka mused. Before she could muster the courage to enter the room, she heard Yomikawa's voice call, "Dinnertime!"

 _I_ _definitely_ _should_ _tell_ _Accelerator_ _about_ _this_ _later._ Shizuka closed the door and hurried off into the living room.

 _During_ _dinner_

"Good job on not burning the vegetables this time, Aiho."

"I did not burn them last time, they were overcooked."

"I wonder how _that_ happened."

Shizuka laughed and whispered to Accelerator, "They're acting a lot more childish than Last Order."

"Get used to it. It happens practically every meal." Accelerator had barely touched his plate of food.

"Seriously, aren't you going to eat anything?"

"Not hungry."

"You barely ate anything for lunch, and you ate nothing at the amusement park."

"I barely even ate before I moved in with Yomikawa."

"Why?"

"Don't ask. I just barely eat. I lived on coffee."

"You'll probably grow as thin as thread. I could blow you to England with one gust of wind."

"One, that's scientifically impossible, two, I doubt you have enough strength to summon a tornado strong enough to blow me away." He let out a short laugh. "You could test it on the brat first."

"'What are you two talking about?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA looks at the two curiously."

"How far Tsukiko could probably blow you away with one gust of wind, brat. I'm guessing England. Or even North America."

"'Hey, MISAKA doesn't want to be blown away!' Cries MISAKA as MISAKA gets angry at Accelerator-san."

"Relax, Last Order, I'm not going to do that. Accelerator was just joking with you. At least I think he is."

"I don't joke," Accelerator replied with the merest hint of a smirk. "I'm telling the truth."

"Sure you are."

Yomikawa and Yoshikawa glanced toward the teens.

"He's gotten livelier since Tsukiko came," Yoshikawa observed.

"Do you think she can crack his expressionless exterior?"

"She's gotten closer than any of us. Maybe it has to do with their pasts."

"Well, I hope she does. He's far too grouchy for his own good."

 _After dinner_

Last Order had gone to her bedroom to read a magazine, and the adults were busy watching the news on TV. Accelerator and Shizuka were sitting on Shizuka's bed conversing about what she saw in the adults' bedroom.

"A metal box with strange patterns and designs? That doesn't sound like something Yoshikawa would own. I didn't see it in any of the moving boxes she brought here when we moved in."

"I saw it poking out of the space under the bed. Before she opened the door, I heard something slide across the ground, so I'm guessing that was it."

"What did the designs look like?"

Some water formed in Shizuka's hand and shifted to create a couple swirling patterns in circles.

"I couldn't see much, but this is a rough idea."

"I have no idea what they mean."

Shizuka let out a gasp of recognition. "This is it! Why don't I think of it earlier? But why would Yoshikawa have something like this?"

"What are you talking about?"

"These are magic circles."

"What? Don't tell me you hit your head somewhere before I got you off the streets."

"I did not hit my head. And I'm surprised you don't know magic exists. Well, only a few people in Academy City know."

"And why did you think I'd know magic exists?"

"Just a guess. After all, how would explain the white wings and the halos of light a few months ago?"

"You saw them?"

"Yes."

"You said you were locked up in the lab!"

"The scientists trained hidden security cameras all over the city. Just the public places. I saw everything. Sadly for them, I destroyed all of them before I escaped."

"How do you know about magic then?"

"I seriously don't know. I'm betting it's something from my past."

"What the hell is everybody hiding?"

"Don't ask me. I'm just as much in the dark as you are. Well, now you know magic exists."

"Yeah, but I know nothing else about it."

Shizuka promptly launched into a long explanation of magic, religion, and everything else she knew. Accelerator just sat and listened, absorbing the information. After she finished, the two sat silently, until Accelerator broke the silence with a question that was on both teens' minds.

"Do you think magic has something to do with our pasts?"

"Most likely. Hey, can I try something?"

"What?"

"Let me read your mind."

"You're not going to control me, are you?"

"No. I'm just going to take a look at your past."

"Don't be surprised if you see mostly violence or blood."

"Don't worry; I know what I'm looking for. Now, give me your hand."

"Just don't do any damage to my mind. I'd rather not be reduced to a mindless fool."

"I won't. Just a warning, you will feel my presence in your mind and you'll recall your memories as I'm searching. Don't push my presence away."

"Why didn't you tell the brat that?"

"Mind control and mind reading are different. Now hurry up."

"Alright then." Accelerator cautiously extended his left hand, and Shizuka clasped it in her right hand. She closed her eyes, concentrating. Suddenly, Accelerator felt a presence just hovering outside his consciousness, trying to get in. Remembering what Shizuka said, he allowed the presence to enter his head. Involuntarily, his eyes also closed.

 _Can you hear me, Accelerator?_

 _Is that you, Tsukiko?_

 _Yes._

 _Okay, this is kind of creepy._

 _Well, this is our only way of communication now. Now, will you let me see your memories?_

 _Fine._

Accelerator suddenly recalled the day's events, going backwards to the day before, and then two days ago, and then to the time when he rescued Shizuka.

 _Tsukiko, what's going on?_

 _I told you you'd be reliving your memories. Hang on; I'm going to speed up. Don't pass out._

 _Not intentionally, at least._

Accelerator felt a rush of dizziness, as more memories surfaced, and then the rush stopped to one scene he didn't remember: the black wings sprouting out of his back, his lips moving in a strange language as Kihara Amata was blasted out of the building, the black wings encasing the man.

 _Hey, I don't remember any of this._

 _I can clearly see that this is from your perspective, Accelerator. Don't tell me you were possessed or something._

 _I probably was._

 _And you remember nothing?_

 _No._

More memories were recalled: hunting and killing the Hound Dogs, searching for Last Order in the mall, moving in with Yomikawa, getting shot in the head by Amai Ao, letting Last Order stay in his old apartment, his defeat at the hands of Kamijou Touma, his confrontation with the Railgun Misaka Mikoto after the death of MISAKA-9982, his battle with the first MISAKA clone, being taken in to the Special Abilities Institute, and suddenly, he was back in that playground so many years ago.

 _Tsukiko, why are you stopping?_

 _Give me one second. These memories don't feel right._

 _What do you mean?_

 _Okay, this is weird._

 _What is it?_

 _This isn't your past. These are artificial memories, created with machines and not your own mind._

 _How would you know?_

 _I can tell when a memory is formed by the mind. These memories leading up to the Special Abilities Institute are not connected to the mind in any way._

 _Are you saying my entire past was a fake one?_

 _Yes._

And suddenly, the image of the playground cracked and shattered, leaving only a black, empty void.

 _What did you do, Tsukiko?_

 _I'm trying to reach your true memories. They're hidden extremely well for some reason._

A white light abruptly appeared and formed shapes, circles with triangles and smaller circles in patterns inside.

 _Oh no, this isn't good._

 _What's going on? What's the light for?_

 _Accelerator, let go of my hand right now._

Accelerator commanded his hand to pull away from Shizuka's. For some reason, his hand remained unmoving, not even twitching.

 _I can't!_

 _Damn it! The only way for this to stop is if we break the mental link._

 _What is it?_

 _A magic seal._

 _There's magic in my head?!_

 _Apparently yes. I think willing them away will have nasty results, so don't try it._

 _Then what_ do _I do?_

 _Hang in there and hope for the best. I can't do anything either._

The circles started growing larger and larger, glowing brighter until the entire void was filled with light. And then it expanded outwards. Accelerator could sense his hand burning, and then felt a sudden jolt. He heard a scream from Shizuka and a bang as the door slammed open...

And suddenly he was on the floor, Shizuka out cold on top of him, pinning his body to the ground.

"What the hell happened in here?" Yomikawa demanded.

"Aiho, let me handle this." Shizuka groaned and tried to get up. Yoshikawa walked over and helped Shizuka up and onto the bed, allowing Accelerator room to struggle into a sitting position on the floor.

"What happened?"

"I was trying to see his past, but something was blocking his memories."

"'Are Tsukiko-san and Accelerator-san alright?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA looks at them worriedly."

"Don't worry about me, brat. I'm fine."

"I'm alright, Last Order. Thanks for asking."

Yoshikawa straightened up. "Aiho, get Last Order out of this room and get the first-aid kit. Their hands look like they've been burnt."

"Come on, Last Order. Let's go." Yomikawa led the little girl outside. Yoshikawa turned to the two.

"I should have known something like this would happen."

"Yoshikawa, why are there magic seals in Accelerator's mind?"

"Forget the magic and don't speak in riddles. Is it true that the memories of my childhood I can recall are fake?"

Yoshikawa looked shocked. "You figured that out?"

"I sensed it when I was in his mind and told him."

"Also, what's with that box under your bed?"

Yoshikawa let out a rueful sigh. "Looks like I didn't hide it well enough. Okay, I'll tell you all I can once your hands get looked at."

Since all the excitement had died down, the espers finally felt the burning pain in their hands. The skin was an angry red colour, and painful looking blisters were bubbling up.

Yomikawa entered the room with the first aid kit. She covered the burnt areas with ointment and then wrapped bandages around the affected hands.

"Kikyou, what do we do?"

"We have to tell them now, Aiho. Oh, what's Last Order doing?"

"I let her watch TV again. She didn't want to sleep so early."

"What time is it?"

"9 o'clock."

"It would be better if we told you in our bedroom. Come with us, you two."

The adults got up and left the room. Shizuka looked silently at Accelerator, a question in her eyes. He gave her a brief nod. She touched Accelerator's arm with her unburned hand and sent a thought.

 _Do you think we'll know now?_

 _I doubt it. I'm guessing they'll tell us the least of it._

 _Let's go then._

Shizuka removed her hand from Accelerator's arm, and the two walked together to the adults' bedroom.

 **Hope you liked it! Please review, follow/favourite! Do you think I should pair up Accelerator with Shizuka?**

 **~goddessofshadows7212**


	6. Accelerator Nearly Gets Killed

**Woo-hoo! Nearly 5000 words! My longer chapter ever yet~**

When the teens entered the room, Yomikawa was typing away at her computer and Yoshikawa was aimlessly sifting through the contents in the metal box Shizuka saw earlier. When they went in, the women looked up.

"You can sit on the bed or the floor. We have a lot to discuss." Yoshikawa put the box down and closed the lid. The circles seemed to be glowing with a faint silvery light.

Accelerator and Shizuka sat beside each other on the floor, leaning on the side of the bed. Yomikawa turned to the two.

"I don't know much, but I may interject occasionally. Kikyou knows everything, but don't swamp her with questions. Where should we start, Kikyou?"

"From the very beginning."

"Which is?" Accelerator looked disinterested at the chatter the adults were putting up. "Get to the point already."

"Alright, alright. Accelerator, as you know, I was a researcher for the Level 6 Shift Project. Before that, I was an assistant at the Special Abilities Institute when you were taken in. I suppose you don't have any memories of me before you were taken in?"

"No."

"Even if your memories weren't altered, you probably wouldn't remember me. I was your childhood guardian."

"I find that hard to believe."

"Okay. You remember nothing, but what I'm telling you is all true. Shortly after you were born, a person who knows you very well appeared to me. I was asked to protect you and guard you from a distance, and I did so."

"Anything you can tell me about my parents?"

"I am forbidden to tell you. However, your body has the capability to use and possess magic."

"Does that explain the black wings?"

Yoshikawa's eyes widened. "You had the capability to be awakened?"

"Is that what it's called?"

"No wonder the person said you had such a big role..."

"What?"

"I'll tell you that after."

"Why did the person choose you for my guardian? And how does that person know me?"

"The person is someone very close to you, but I doubt you'll remember. As for me being your guardian, I am a distant family friend."

"How do you know about magic?"

"That person told me."

"Hey, is there anything you know about me, Yoshikawa?"

"I'll get to that, Tsukiko."

"What were you saying about being awakened?" Accelerator prompted.

"Over the course of history, select individuals have angels watching over them. Experienced magicians can sense the presence of the angel around that person. Awakening means the angel takes possession of the individual's body. It's very rare for the angel to awaken in the individual's body; some live their lives without being awakened. Some can be awakened by a magic ritual. Others, well, I don't really know."

"So you're saying I have an angel watching over me. That's hard to believe, considering my past was drenched with blood and violence. And I thought angels were supposed to be holy and all that."

"Don't ask me about the details. I know nothing from besides what I was told. What I'm confused about is the black wings."

"Why?"

Shizuka interjected: "Didn't you know angels had white wings?"

"I know that. So does that mean black wings mean some kind of fallen angel or something?"

"I have no idea. Yoshikawa?"

"I don't know either. Anyways, I watched you from a distance until you were taken into the Special Abilities Institute, and then I applied for a job as assistant to keep an eye on you. Just after you were taken in, the lead scientists voted to have your memories erased and replaced with fake ones."

"Why?"

"There were some people and certain events they didn't want you to remember. There was also a magician there posing as a scientist who put the seals in your mind so no one could access them. I was told by that person that your emotions and mind would be twisted, Accelerator, and the prediction was right, you know. I couldn't stop anything since I had no authority to decide."

"Well, even if my memories weren't erased, what I experienced there would have changed me already. Besides, the doctor said I'd get the memories back on my eighteenth birthday."

"He's right."

"That completely contradicts what you just said."

"There are things he knows and I don't. Someone must have countered the seal or something."

"And what does Tsukiko have to do with this?"

"You two were good friends when you were around 6 years of age. Your parents knew one another, and both of you are extremely special. Tsukiko's body can also use and possess magic."

Shizuka and Accelerator stared at each other in shock. After a few moments, he scoffed and looked down. "No wonder you kept on popping up in my dreams before I rescued you."

"You were dreaming of me before you even met me a few days ago?"

"Yeah."

"What about you, Tsukiko?" Yomikawa looked up, interested.

"Come to think of it, I had one dream of chasing after someone who looked like Accelerator."

"Looks like the countering spell is already working to break the memory seal."

"But I don't have any magic seals in my mind."

"That's because your memories were erases purely with technology. This may be a guess, but I think someone knew your memories would be erased and cast a spell so you'd recall them later."

"Are the reasons for erasing my memory same as Accelerator's?"

"Yes."

"So what's going to happen on my eighteenth birthday? It's in two more days."

"Same for me."

"I was contacted by that person earlier, as you know, and I was given a few facts. Yes, you two share a birthday. You'll be in a coma as the seal breaks, and then stay like that for some time as your mind adjusts to the influx of memories."

"So when do we wake up?"

"I don't know."

"And that's all you can say?"

"Yes."

"What about the box?" Shizuka glanced at the box, which still glowed with a hint of silvery light.

"It just contains magic methods to contact that person if I can't use cellphones."

"I see. But why can't you use cellphones."

"There are things that have to be kept secret even from the founder of this city and the one manipulating everything behind the scenes, Aleister Crowley."

"You forgot something else, Yoshikawa. Earlier, you said I had some big role in something."

Yoshikawa had a look of regret on her face. "I wish you forgot that, Accelerator."

"I didn't. What is it?"

"A war is coming up. It's been predicted that you'd play a large part in it, and if you do, you'll most likely die."

Accelerator was stunned into silence. Shizuka broke in. "Who are on the two sides of the war?"

"You'll know soon enough. I imagine a declaration will be issued in a matter of days or weeks."

Abruptly, Accelerator got up and left the room. A minute later, they could hear the door slamming.

Last Order came into the room with a confused look on her face. "'Why's Accelerator-san going outside this late at night?' Wonders MISAKA as MISAKA tries to find an answer."

Yomikawa sighed. "Apparently, he needs some time to himself. Don't try searching for him, Tsukiko. You too, Last Order."

"Will he come back?"

"Eventually, I think. By the way, I have something to tell you Tsukiko. Come over here."

Shizuka went over to Yomikawa's desk, where Yomikawa had some files open on her laptop. Yomikawa opened one file to show a few pictures. She enlarged them and showed them to Shizuka.

"Any of these look familiar?"

"That's the lab where I was in!"

"So the information we got was correct."

"Eh? What information?"

"When Accelerator rescued you, he killed one of the lackeys and left the other one unconscious. After Yoshikawa received the call from him to get an ambulance, he also told her one was still alive, so she told me to go with my Anti-Skill squad to capture the man. He woke up yesterday and we interrogated him on the whereabouts about the lab. He gave us the address of the place and we managed to hack into one of the security cameras and took some pictures of the place."

"I see."

"Well, now that we know it's the place, some units of Judgment and Anti-Skill will be dispatched there to apprehend and interrogate the scientists there. Nobody even knew that place existed until now."

"Everything there was kept a secret. They barely told me anything. I'm surprised the building is still standing though."

"We noticed scorch marks and collapsed wings."

"Yeah, I kind of demolished the place to escape."

"Well, do you think the scientists could still be there?"

"They have a lot of expensive equipment there, so maybe. Considering the damage, they may have moved to another location."

"Well, I'm with one of the Anti-Skill squads, so I'll tell you if anything happens tomorrow."

"Thanks."

"Oh, forget what I told you earlier. If Accelerator doesn't come back tomorrow morning, go look for him."

"Okay."

Yomikawa closed the laptop. "He's too much trouble these days. Still, considering his time at the Special Abilities Institute, I'm surprised he still retains his humanity."

"What happened there?"

"You'll have to ask him yourself. Yoshikawa doesn't know much since she was only an assistant."

"Okay. Well, I'll sleep now. Nothing for me to do."

"Good night, Tsukiko."

"'Night."

Shizuka left the room and went to her own bedroom, where she changed into a nightgown and lay down on the bed. However, sleep was evading her, so she summoned some water and spent the time making random patterns. Eventually, after an hour, her eyes closed and she felt herself slipping into a dream...

 _Wherever Accelerator is_

Accelerator found himself walking aimlessly around the city again, this time his only intention was to get away from the apartment. This time, however, there was barely a soul in sight. He needed to think, to get his thoughts in order.

 _You have an angel watching you._

Shut up, he told his mind.

The thoughts were relentless, though.

 _You and Shizuka were friends when you were still an innocent, happy child._ _But sadly, your memories were all erased and changed._

 _Shut up already!_ He mentally screamed at his mind.

 _You'll die in the upcoming war._  
That was the last thing before his conscience went silent.

So he was going to die. Well, he didn't really care about his life. Did he? He could have not computed the deflection of the bullet Amai Ao sent into his head. He could have died right then and there and he wouldn't have been in this mess in the first place.

"Well, if you're going to ignore me, can I kill you right now?"

That voice jolted him out of his thoughts. He looked around to see he was in an area in Academy City which was usually crowded day and night, but strangely, the place was empty. To his surprise, white cards with a strange looking symbol were plastered all over the place.

"I'm behind you, esper. And if you want to know, these are runes to keep anybody else from entering this area."

Accelerator looked behind him to find a blond teenager looking at him with a smirk. He had almost cat-like yellow eyes, a black cloak around him and he was wearing a medieval-looking green tunic underneath.

"Who the hell are you?"

"My name's not important, but if you wish to know, I'm from the Roman Catholic Church. I was dispatched here to kill you."

"A church? So you're a magician."

"You aren't as in the dark about magic than I thought you were. Oh well, makes no difference whatsoever. The Roman Catholic Church considers you to be a threat in the war, so they sent one of their best soldiers, me, to kill you before the war even starts."

"Who's fighting who?"

"Oh, you didn't know? The Roman Catholic Church will declare war on the Science side soon. Now, enough talking." With that, the boy raised his right hand and a bolt of lightning shot down, aimed straight for Accelerator. Accelerator turned on his choker and quickly deflected the lightning bolt to the boy. The blond caught the lightning bolt, let it dissipate, and turned to Accelerator with a disappointed look on his face.

"Damn, I forgot you had that deflection ability. Oh well, let's see if you can deflect this!" A ball of crackling light formed in his hand and he threw the ball straight at Accelerator's chest. Accelerator tried to deflect it, but it didn't work and the ball slammed into his chest, sending him flying into a wall. He got up after a minute, coughing up blood. He had felt a few ribs crack, and it hurt to take a breath. His shirt was charred black from the blast.

"You bastard..."

"I get that a lot. Well, looks like you can't deflect pure magic." A larger ball of magic formed and separated into smaller ones, flying at Accelerator again. Mustering his strength, Accelerator controlled the wind vectors and flew high into the air, flying straight for the blond magician, who looked surprised at the fact Accelerator could fly. Shaking off his surprise, the magician muttered a spell which sent a blast of lightning at Accelerator, who promptly dodged, but the lightning followed him and blasted him to the ground.

"I hope you're dead now. This mission totally ruined my vacation."

Accelerator struggled to sit up, blood pouring down his head and his body. Electricity crackled around him. The boy sighed. "Still not dead? Seriously, I wish I didn't have to use this spell."

He began chanting again, but Accelerator slammed his hand on the ground, uprooting the ground around the boy and sending him flying for a wind turbine. However, the boy recovered quickly and flew back to his original spot, his body crackling with lightning.

"You put up a good fight considering you don't know any spells. But as you know, magic is always more powerful than science. Goodbye, Accelerator." The boy started up another chant, moving his fingers in lightning-fast patterns. Out of energy and in immense pain, Accelerator could do nothing but watch as the boy finished the chant. Thunder rumbled in the sky, and multiple bolts of magical lightning shot down, all aimed for Accelerator. Not one of them missed.

A cry of pain was torn from Accelerator's throat as millions of volts of electricity and magical energy coursed through his body. He slumped to the ground, seemingly dead.

"Huh, the body's still intact? Looks like I'll have to make sure he's dead." The blond drew a sword out of a scabbard clipped to his belt and made to take a step towards the esper.

But before the boy could take a single step, a fiery sword poked out of his chest. He looked down in surprise as blood starting pouring out of the wound and his mouth. The sword was promptly jerked out and the boy turned to see a red haired man standing there with a cigarette in his mouth and something looking like a barcode under one eye.

"Impossible," the boy rasped. "No one told me he was under the protection of Necessarius."

"He is now. If he's dead, I will lay such curses on your spirit that you shall be in eternal torment no matter wherever you are."

"A thousand curses on your own grave, Stiyl Magnus."

"You do not know how many times my enemies say that." With that, the boy collapsed on the ground, dead.

Stiyl wiped off the blood on his sword on the dead boy's clothes and turned to the seemingly dead teen. Taking out a cell, he made a call.

"Kamijou, are you there?"

"Oh, it's you, Stiyl. What's going on?"

"You and Index find an empty room or someplace safe with a bed and tell her to get some powerful healing magic ready. Extremely powerful."

"Eh? Who got injured this time?"

"Don't ask me questions, just do it."

"Alright, alright."

Stiyl hung up and looked up at the top of one building.

"I wonder if he's dead. Aren't you going to help me, Kanzaki?"

"He looks pretty light, why do you need my help?" Kanzaki jumped down and nimbly landed on the ground, giving Accelerator the once over.

"The electricity seems to have stopped his heart and permanently paralyzed him. I don't think he should be alive right now."

"Well, he'd better be alive. He held out longer than anyone else I saw who fought him, and they were all magicians. And they all died as well."

"That first energy ball would have killed a regular human, and I doubt the one they call the Railgun could have absorbed or survived that last lightning blast. The body should have been obliterated. You were lucky you had the element of surprise on your side and the fact he was out of magical energy."

"Well, he's definitely not regular. I probably should have stepped in earlier though."

"Very true."

Stiyl's cellphone rang and he picked it up.

"We got a place ready. It's at Komoe-sensei's place."

"Where?"

"Remember that place where I went to heal Index?"

"We'll be there in a few minutes."  
Snapping the phone shut, he draped Accelerator's unconscious and bloody form over his shoulder and started walking. Kanzaki followed closely after, looking out for any other magicians.

They reached the place in a few minutes, with Touma and Index at the door.

"Who did you rescue this time, Stiyl?"

"A kid who seems to be on the Science side, but he was targeted by the Roman Catholic Church. They sent one of their most powerful magicians after him. He should have been dead by now, but he seems to be able to take in some magic."

Komoe popped up and ran over to Stiyl. "Huh? It's Accelerator-san."

"What? No way!" Touma rushed over and tried to examine the unconscious white-haired boy. Stiyl pushed the spiky-haired boy out of the way and laid Accelerator on the bed.

"Huh? He looks different from the last time I saw him."

"That's because he got shot in the head saving the last 10000 MISAKA clones. The bullet destroyed his computing and language abilities, so he has to wear that choker for him to use his ability and he needs a crutch to go around town." Komoe replied.

"Out of all people, he saved the last 10000? But how? And he killed the first 10000 as well!"

"He took in clone number 20001, known as Last Order. She had a virus implanted in her head which could have caused all the remaining clones to go berserk, and he stopped the virus. However, the scientist shot him in the head since he couldn't reflect the bullet while rewriting the virus code. That's why he's like this now."

"Oh...so that's who the mini-MISAKA was talking about at the mall. He looks like he changed a lot."

"If you got shot in the head and still survived, you'd change, Kamijou-chan."

"Stop talking, everyone! He won't live any longer if I can't heal him right now."

"Sorry, Index. We'll leave you to your work then."

"I'll go contact Yomikawa-san then and tell her what happened." Komoe turned to the phone.

"Wait," a weak voice rasped from the bed. "Don't tell her or Yoshikawa." Accelerator hissed in pain as he tried to sit up. Index rushed over to him.

"Don't sit up and stay still. I'll heal you soon."

"Oh, it's you again." Accelerator looked around and his eyes landed on Touma. His eyes flared with rage.

"You!"

"Uh...um...hi?"

Accelerator gave him a look of disdain as best as he could in his current state and looked away. Meanwhile, Index glared at Stiyl. "I thought you said he was dead!"

"I told you he was _supposed_ to be dead!"

"Hmph!" Index turned to Accelerator and with plenty of force behind her voice, she commanded: "Sleep." Accelerator's eyes rolled up and he collapsed back onto the bed.

"Touma, I suggest you leave. Your right hand will interfere with the process."

"I know."

"Actually, you too, Komoe-san."

"What about Aisa-san?" She's still here, you know. I think she's asleep, though."

"Who can sleep with all this noise?" The long black-haired girl stepped into the room, in her usual kimono on. "I'm not going to stay."

"Okay then. You three, please exit this place. This will take a few hours, so try to keep busy or something."

"Anything we can do, Index?"

"Stiyl and Kanzaki? I don't really know. Just don't interfere."

Index drew a magic circle around Accelerator and started chanting. The circle glowed with blue light and encased Accelerator's body. After a few more minutes of chanting, the light changed to a white colour. Index stopped chanting.

"Now we need to wait at least 3 hours for his body to heal fully. He was supposed to be dead, but something was keeping his life force anchored to his body."

"What is it?" Stiyl took one step towards Accelerator, but Index stopped him.

"Don't get close. You could disrupt the healing process. I think I know the reason why he's still alive."

"Which is?"

"A few months ago, there were the haloes of white light and the Roman Catholic Church sent Vento of the Front from God's Right Seat to attack Academy City. While Touma was fighting Vento, I located the area where the white light was being controlled and found myself in a strange building with the little girl on the table. She was the remote control of the thing, so I stopped it with a spell. While that was going on, this esper was fighting another man. When I finished, I saw black wings sprout out of his body and I heard him speaking in the language of the angels before killing the man. There is no doubt; he has an angel watching over him. It was a partial awakening though, so the angel wasn't at his full magical potential."

"No wonder he's special. A science kid with an angel watching over him."

"Not just any angel, I can sense that it's extremely powerful. For all we know, it's an archangel."

The two magicians gaped at Index. "There is no record in all of history of an archangel awakening in a human."

Index ignored their reactions. "We should join the others now. It would be best to leave him alone while the spell finishes."

"Alright."

The three Necessarius members exited the room, leaving the white-haired boy peacefully sleeping on the bed, still encased in white light.

 _Accelerator's dream_

Accelerator opened his eyes, and found himself floating in some kind of white void.

"Where am I?" He asked out loud.

"You are in a dream dimension."

Accelerator looked around wildly. "Who are you and where are you?"

"I am all around you, Accelerator. As for asking who I am, I am the one who is keeping you alive, when you should be dead. I was the one who gave you that power and strength to kill Kihara Amata."

"You're an angel?"

"Yes."

"Am I dead or alive?"

"That last blast of lightning would have killed you and obliterated your body had I not intervened. I kept your body from disintegrating, and kept your life force intact."

"Am I supposed to thank you for saving my life?"

"You don't have to."

"Well, I do recall my body being in a bad shape before going unconscious, so what happens when I wake up?"

"You have been rescued by the English Church, Necessarius. They oppose the Roman Catholic Church, but they are neutral. The one they call Index Librorum Prohibitorum has used the healing arts of the grimoires she possesses to restore your body back to its original condition.

"Original condition as in before I got shot or before I got attacked?"

"Before you got attacked. Do you have any more questions?"

"I'm someone from the Science side. Why are you watching over me?"

"You are extremely special, Accelerator. You will get the full details soon, but what I will tell you is this: the blood of a magician and an esper runs through your veins. Combined blood of this power is a taboo in this world, however. You are very unique, and you will need help from me in the upcoming war."

"I have magic in my blood?"

"Yes."

"Well, if I ask you to tell me about my past, are you going to keep quiet about it?"

"Patience is a virtue. You are waking up, Accelerator. Goodbye."

"Wait! What's your name?"

Even as the void was cracking apart, he heard the merest whisper: "Michael."

 _Three hours after Index finished healing Accelerator_

The magicians reentered the room, where the white light and the magic circle had disappeared. Index turned to Stiyl.

"You should wake him up so he can clean up. Kanzaki, you can let the three back in here."

"Got it."

"Alright."

Index and Stiyl turned to Accelerator, but he was already sitting up.

"How did you wake up so fast?"

He shrugged. "Thank you for healing me."

"It wasn't too complicated. You were almost dead though."

"I know."

"Well, do you want to clean yourself up? I don't know if we have any extra clothing though, but there are a lot of bloodstains..."

"No need, I'm going home." He grimaced in pain as he got up, reaching for his crutch that had mysteriously came with him. "What time is it?"

"1 AM." This came from Touma, who had reentered the room. Accelerator scowled at him. "I didn't ask you."

"Well, I do have a watch."

"Shut up. I'm going back now."

"We should have someone accompany him just in case he gets attacked again," Komoe interrupted.

"Good idea, Komoe-san. Stiyl, you'll go with him."

"Why me?"

"You did rescue him."

"I don't need an escort."

"We're not going to take any chances here. You could get attacked again and die."

"I'm going to die anyways."

"During the war, most likely. Right now, no."

"Fine."

"I'll see you off to your apartment and then you're on your own."

"Tch, fine."

Accelerator went out the door without a backward glance. Stiyl hurried after him.

 _In front of the apartment._

"Here you are." Stiyl turned to leave, but Accelerator called after him to wait.

"I'm not the best with being grateful, but thank you for saving me."

"Don't mention it. I was told that you couldn't die yet."

"Who told you?"

"A very powerful diviner and magician in Necessarius. He seems to know a lot about you."

"Diviner?"

"Basically, he can see the future."

"I see."

"Okay, I have to go. Stay on your guard at all times." Stiyl turned and strode away, but he paused and turned back. "You know an angel is in your body, right?"

"Yes. He spoke to me when I was unconscious."

Stiyl had a look of surprise on his face. "Did he tell you his name?"

"Something along the lines of 'Michael'."

"You're joking, right?"

"I don't joke."

"Michael is the most powerful archangel in all of heaven."

"So you're saying I have the most powerful angel possessing my body."

"Yes. This, I have to tell Necessarius about."

"They won't kill me, right?"

"No. Goodbye." Stiyl hurried down the dark street, melting into the shadows.

Accelerator stifled a sigh and unlocked the door to the apartment. To his surprise, the kitchen light was on. Stepping into the kitchen, he saw Shizuka idly playing with a ball of water, her back to him.

"Welcome back."

"I'm surprised you're awake this late."

"I couldn't sleep." She turned around and her eyes landed on his bloodstained clothing. Before she could let out a shriek of surprise and horror, Accelerator had clapped one hand over her mouth.

"Don't scream, I'm fine," he hissed into her ear. He slowly took his hand away and Shizuka stared at him.

"What the hell happened to you?"

"Promise not to tell the adults or the brat."

"I promise."

"I got attacked by a magician and nearly got killed."

"You seem fine though."

"I was about to die, before I got rescued by magicians from another church. They healed me." He was reluctant to tell her about the angel.

"Oh. So you're alright?"

"Yeah. I just need to change my clothes." But before he could leave, he felt a stinging pain across his left cheek. He pressed a hand to the place, staring at Shizuka.

"Ow! What the hell was that for?"

"For scaring the hell out of me and Last Order. She was almost close to crying before she finally fell asleep only 2 hours ago."

"Sorry." Accelerator's voice sounded softer than usual. "I just needed some time to myself."

Shizuka abruptly leaned forward and quickly hugged him. "And that's for coming back safely."

Accelerator turned and left, but not without seeing the smile that crept across Shizuka's face. Entering his room silently, he saw Last Order asleep on his bed again. Quietly, he peeled off his bloody clothes and put on a new outfit, and threw the clothes in the trash. Glancing out at the hallway, he saw the kitchen light turn off and Shizuka entering her room. He went to the living room and lay down on the couch, falling asleep quickly.

 **Review, follow and favourite please!**

 **~goddessofshadows7212**


	7. A Trip to the Park

**Yay! 5000+ words! I've already started on chapter 8, so expect another update soon!**

The morning sun greeted Accelerator with rays of sunlight dancing across his closed eyes. Sensing the light, he shielded his eyes with his arm and sat up on the couch. To his surprise, the clock read 9:00 AM. He didn't hear any other movement in the apartment, and guessed everyone else was still sleeping. Standing up, he began to make his way to the kitchen to grab a refrigerated can of coffee from the pack he had bought without the adults' permission during his last trip to the grocery store. After he closed the fridge door, he noticed a piece of paper stuck to the counter table. His name was on the paper, in Yomikawa's writing. Grabbing that as well, he made his way back to the couch and sat down, opening the folded up note.

 _Well, looks like you came home in the middle of the night. And don't think I don't know what happened. Komoe told me. By the way, I didn't tell Kikyou. Still, I'm glad you made it out safe. Anyways_ , _tell the others I won't be back until at least 7, unless we're let off duty early. I'm part of the Anti-Skill squads that are going with Judgment to raid the lab Tsukiko was in. I may call her with your cellphone to tell her if we found anything of importance. And don't ask me how I knew you would wake up before the others. Happy early birthday, Accelerator._

 _Yomikawa_

The note tore in half from Accelerator's crushing grip. Yomikawa knew he nearly got killed last night. But why didn't she tell Yoshikawa?

 _Damn that child teacher. I told her not to tell._

"My, my, looks like you're the early bird today." Yoshikawa walked into the room, causing Accelerator to quickly hide the note behind him. She didn't notice though, and made her way to the kitchen. "Oh well, Aiho left pretty early. I don't know when she'll be back though."

"Seven o'clock."

"Eh? How do you know?"

"She wrote a note. Said she wouldn't be back until 7 unless she's let off duty early."

"I see. Well, what do you want for breakfast?"

Accelerator gestured to his unopened can of coffee. Yoshikawa sighed. "I've told you so many times to eat something more nutritious."

"Tch, whatever. As long as I get through the day, I'll be fine."

"You may be the most powerful esper, but you are not superhuman. You need other kinds of food to stay healthy."

"Give it up, Yoshikawa. I doubt he'll ever eat a healthy meal voluntarily until hell freezes over." Letting out a yawn, Shizuka entered the room, dressed in a light blue t-shirt with silver designs and a denim miniskirt.

"You don't have to make it sound so detailed," Accelerator grumbled.

"It sounds better than just saying never."

"How was your sleep, Tsukiko?"

"Not bad. Thanks for asking. What's for breakfast? Not counting the coffee."

"Well, we still have food from the trip two days ago." Entering the kitchen, Yoshikawa opened the fridge door. "There's a choice of cereal, or I can make scrambled eggs. There's also- _Accelerator is that a whole pack of coffee?!"_

Accelerator had a smirk on his face. "Damn, I didn't hide it well enough."

"I told you not to buy that much! Just one or two cans!"

Accelerator feigned a look of surprise. "I didn't hear you say that."

"I will never understand how you're still alive when you're only living on coffee."

"I just do."

"Hey, what type of coffee is it?" Shizuka plucked the can out of Accelerator's hand and read the label, ignoring his attempts to snatch it back.

"No sugar, no cream, zero essential nutrients. Pure black coffee."

"Don't question my tastes. And give it back!"

"Nope." Opening the can, Shizuka took a sip. "Hm, not too bad. I like it."

Muttering incoherent words under his breath, Accelerator stalked to the kitchen and got another can. Yoshikawa had gotten a box of eggs out of the fridge and started to heat up the pan for scrambled eggs.

"'Eh? What smells so good?' Says MISAKA as MISAKA comes in the room."

"It's breakfast, Last Order."

Last Order caught sight of Accelerator casually sipping his coffee and her eyes lit up. She ran over and hugged him hard, causing him to spill his coffee all over his clothing.

"'Accelerator-san! You're back! MISAKA was so worried!' Says MISAKA as MISAKA hugs him tightly."

"I came back, didn't I, brat? Now get off me." Accelerator pushed the little girl off him and drank down the last drops of liquid in his can. Looking down at his clothing, his once-white shirt had been stained with dark brown coffee.

"Great, another shirt ruined. Does coffee even wash off?"

"I don't think so. You could probably wash the coffee away, but there will still be a stain once it dries."

Accelerator let out another string of mumbled curses and got up, going into his bedroom.

"I heard him say that he ruined another shirt. What happened to the one he wore last night?" Yoshikawa came out of the kitchen with plates of food. Shizuka and Last Order eagerly dug in once she set the plates on the table.

"Slipped into some mud when I was outside." Accelerator had reentered the room with a new white long-sleeved T-shirt, a look on his face that said _Ask any more questions and I'll kill you._

"Well, how about you stick them in the laundry then?"

"Tch, no. I doubt numerous washings will get the stains off."

"You should really wear more colours. The only colour I see anywhere on you is in your red eyes. Other than that, it's black and white."

"Whatever."

"I wonder what you'd look like if you didn't have that deflection ability." Shizuka looked at Accelerator hard, trying to imagine him with different features.

"Stop staring at me. And I have no idea."

The telephone started ringing, and Yoshikawa picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Is that you, Yoshikawa-san?"

"Yes, who is it?"

"It's me, Komoe. Is Yomikawa-san by any chance here?"

"No, she has Anti-Skill work. She won't be back until late."

"I see. Would you mind if I came over with some people I know? They want to talk to Accelerator-chan."

"Who are they?"

"He should know. Can you put him on the phone?"

"Okay." Yoshikawa handed the phone over to Accelerator. "It's Komoe."

"What do you want, child teacher?"

"Is that any way to greet the person who let the others use her home to save you?"

"Whatever. What do you want with me?"

"The magicians from last night want to talk to you."

"Which ones?"

"Me and Kanzaki. I might bring Index and Kamijou as well." A male voice, namely Stiyl's voice, had cut in.

"If you're bringing that level 0, no way in hell."

"I have a name!" Accelerator faintly heard Touma yell in the distance.

"Deal with it, I'm bringing him."

"Fine."

"Anyways, Accelerator-chan, just tell Yoshikawa-san to let us over." Komoe had snatched the phone back.

"Fine." Accelerator hung up.

"What was that about, Accelerator?"

"Apparently that child teacher knows a couple magicians who want to speak with me. She told me to tell you to let them in."

Yoshikawa looked startled. "Magicians?"

"Yeah."

"Did they say which church they're from? And how does Komoe know about magic?"

"They're from Necessarius, some English Anglican church. And don't ask me about that, I have no idea how the child teacher knows."

"Did Komoe say when they were coming?"

"Nope." The phone rang again. Accelerator picked up, missing the look of shock on Yoshikawa's face.

"We'll be here in the afternoon." Stiyl's voice said through the phone, and then the call was cut off.

"There's your answer. The afternoon."

"Well, what should are you going to do then?"

"Don't ask me."

"'Can we go to the park?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA states an idea."

"Why not? What do you think, Tsukiko? Tsukiko?"

Shizuka was thinking about the dream she had last night, and had zoned out, her eyes glazing over.

 _Dreamscape_

 _Shizuka stood in a park, identical to the one she saw in Accelerator's memories. Involuntarily, she floated over to the swing set, where a little white-haired boy was sitting on a swing, staring at the ground._

Oh gods, is that Accelerator as a little kid? _She thought._

 _A much larger boy rushed him and tried to punch him, but before the fist could connect, it was deflected and the boy went flying. The little boy didn't even look up from the ground._

 _"Hey, are you even going to use the swing?" Shizuka saw a little blue-haired girl with a blue dress on. Startled, the young boy looked up, surprised at the fact someone would talk to him, but then his face hardened._

 _"There are two swings, aren't there? Use the other one and leave me alone."_

 _"Well, if all you're going to do is sit on the swing and think, you should sit and think somewhere else. You're hogging the swing."_

 _"What's it to you? Leave me alone." The boy replied rather rudely._

 _"How about this? Let's have a swinging contest. Whoever swings higher is the winner. If you win, I'll leave you alone. If I win, you have to tell me your name and talk to me."_

 _"It's on."_

 _The two children started swinging back and forth, pumping their legs to go higher. For a while, it looked like a tie. Then the boy started to go higher. When Shizuka took a closer look, she literally saw the chains moving, and realized the boy Accelerator was lengthening the chains with his ability so he could go higher._

 _The girl looked over, surprised. After a second, a devious smile crossed her face and a sudden gust of wind blew directly behind her, pushing her high up in the air. "Yay!"_

 _"A wind elementalist? That's so not fair!"_

 _The little girl grinned at Accelerator. "You agreed, didn't you?" Another gust of wind pushed the boy's swing back, causing the swing to stop._

 _"Hey!"_

 _"You were using your abilities too!" The little girl stopped her swing and smiled deviously again. "I won! Now you have to talk to me."_

 _"...Fine."_

 _The two children stayed on the swings. The boy stared at the girl. "What do you want to know?"_

 _"What's your ability?"_

 _"I don't really have a name for it. It's good to keep bullies away though."_

 _"Well, I can control all the elements!"_

 _The boy looked interested. "Show me."_

 _With a start, Shizuka realized it was her younger self. The little girl held out her hand and a ball of water materialized, and then a ball of fire appeared on the same hand. The boy looked on, entranced._

 _"I'm not too good with earth. I can only create small earthquakes. And you already saw me using air." The fire and water disappeared._

 _"Why did your ability come to you so quickly?"_

 _"I don't know. What about you?"_

 _"I don't know either. It just feels like I've had it all my life."_

 _"Same for me. So if I try poking you, I'll get blown away?"_

 _"Don't try it."_

 _"Okay."_

 _"What's your name?"_

 _"I'm Shizuka. Nice to meet you! What's your name?"_

 _"I'm-"_

The young boy's voice was cut off abruptly by another voice.

I'm sorry, Shizuka, but this is the most I can show you before your actual birthday.

Who are you? _Shizuka asked._

 _But before she could hear the voice's answer, she felt herself waking up._

"Oi, Tsukiko. Snap out of it!" A hand waved in front of her face, causing Shizuka to blink.

"Huh? What's going on?"

"You've zoned out for nearly 10 minutes without responding. What happened to you?"

"Oh, sorry. I was thinking about last night's dream."

"That was enough to keep you zoned out for 10 minutes?" Accelerator had a mild look of disbelief on his face, which he quickly hid under an expressionless mask.

"I guess. Anyways, what were we talking about?"

"Can you and Accelerator take Last Order to the park?"

"Sure, why not?"

"You guys can stay outside until 12.

"What are you going to do, Yoshikawa?"

"Nothing in particular."

"'Let's go!' Says MISAKA as MISAKA tugs at Tsukiko-san's hand."

Shizuka laughed. "Come on, Accelerator. Let's go."

The trio walked out of the apartment and into the warm summer day.

 _At the park_

Shizuka and Last Order were busy playing on the climbing bars and slides, while Accelerator stayed on a bench, watching them with mild disinterest. Shizuka saw him watching, and climbed to the top of the climbing bars, jumping off and landing on the ground with incredible balance and agility. She jogged over to Accelerator.

"Come and join us!"

"Can you even imagine a cripple like me climbing that thing?"

"The least you can do is have some fun. How about we go on the swings?"

"You're not going to leave me alone, are you?"

"Nope!"

"Fine." Accelerator got up and stalked towards the swings, his crutch clicking at his side. Once he got there, he turned and looked around at the park.

"Where's the brat?"

Shizuka pointed over to the slides, where Last Order was busy squealing with excitement as she slid down the huge slide.

"Well, as long as she doesn't disappear, I'm not going to care."

"Stop putting up that uncaring front. I know you care for her."

"What's it to you? I've always been like this."

"What, all sarcastic, sadistic and uncaring?"

"Yeah."

"Doesn't mean you can't change your attitude."

Accelerator scoffed and looked away.

Shizuka suddenly had an idea. "Let's have a contest!"

"For?" Accelerator balanced himself on the swing, looking boredly at her. His crutch had been carefully placed at the side of the swing set.

"Let's see who can swing the highest."

A small glint of excitement sparked in his eyes. "You're on." Reaching up casually to turn his choker, he started swinging back and forth. When he got high enough so that he was nearly parallel with the ground, he lengthened the chains, allowing him to go even higher.

Shizuka was swinging below him, her eyes watching the chains move with his ability. Somehow, she knew he'd do that, so she summoned a gust of wind that blew her high up in the air so she was level with Accelerator. She grinned and took a hand off the chains to wave at him.

"I completely forgot I was up against a wind elementalist. Damn." Accelerator had a malicious smirk on his face, and suddenly the wind was rushing towards him, pushing him higher than Shizuka, leaving her gaping at him.

"I can control vectors, remember that." He stopped his swing abruptly, waiting for Shizuka to stop her swing. When she did, she glared at him.

"I thought I was controlling the wind!"

"Apparently I wrested the control from you." Accelerator had a thoughtful look on his face. "It feels like I've done this before."

"What?"

"A swinging competition. For some reason, I knew I lost last time, so I used a different tactic."

"Do you remember what happened last time?"

"No. Just a shadow of it."

"Do you know why I wanted this competition?"

"Are you going to tell me?"

"I had a dream last night, about a boy and a girl..." Shizuka trailed off as she put a hand on Accelerator's arm and used her telepathy to send the dream she had to him. After she was done, she took her hand off, and watched his expression. His face was completely blank, void of expression. After a few minutes, he smirked and turned to Shizuka.

"I didn't realize you were that short back then."

" _That's_ the only thing you're going to say? And you were shorter as well!"

"Tch, I bet I was still taller. Well, now we know the scientists lied again."

"On what?"

"You didn't notice? You said Tsukiko Shizuka was the name the scientists said they gave you, not your original name. Turns out it was your actual name as well."

"Well, at least I don't have to find out my actual name."

"I still don't know mine, considering the memory was cut off. Not like I care, it was probably a horrible name anyways."

"Well, I don't understand why I was shown that before my eighteenth birthday."

"Remember what Yoshikawa said? Apparently the spell or whatever it is has started working to return our memories."

"Right."

Their conversation was cut short as Last Order ran up to the two. "'What time is it?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA looks at Tsukiko-san.'

"I don't have a watch. Accelerator?"

"11."

"Yoshikawa said 12, right?" Accelerator nodded.

"One hour to kill. So, what do we do?"

Accelerator shrugged. "I don't really care."

Suddenly, they heard a female voice.

"Hurry up! I don't think we lost it yet!"

"Geez, Biri-biri, stop running! We probably lost it a while ago!"

Accelerator watched with amusement as Misaka Mikoto and Kamijou Touma rushed into the park, out of breath. Touma collapsed on the ground.

"You...need to stop...doing that."

"At least you got another free drink after losing another 2000-yen bill in the vending machine!"

Only after they caught their breath did their eyes land on the trio looking on with mixed expressions. Last Order and Shizuka's face held surprise, while Accelerator was hiding a look of amusement under a thin veil of cool hostility. Misaka was the first to react, as her face went red with rage upon seeing Accelerator.

"You!"

"Me." Accelerator's voice was cool and collected, with a hint of annoyance. "Railgun. And the level 0."

"I have a name!"

"I don't have to acknowledge it."

"What are _you_ doing here?"

"None of your business, third-rate."

Last Order's face morphed from an expression of surprise to an expression of delight upon seeing the original.

"'It's the original Misaka! Onee-sama!' Says MISAKA as MISAKA hugs Onee-sama."

"Huh? A mini Sister?" Misaka's demeanor had transformed from rage to surprise and curiosity.

"Her name is Last Order, serial number 20001, the last clone in the system." Accelerator's voice hadn't changed a bit. "You can technically call her the console for the MISAKA network."

Touma scratched his head. "Isn't that the mini-MISAKA I saw at the mall?"

"How dense are you, level 0? She's the same brat."

"I'm not dense!"

"Can someone please tell me what's going on?" Shizuka had a look of absolute confusion on her face.

"Oh right. Railgun and level 0, this is Tsukiko Shizuka, elementalist and telepath. Tsukiko, this is the third-ranked level 5 Misaka Mikoto, known as the Railgun, and the level 0 Kamijou Touma, known as Imagine Breaker. This will be the last time I'm saying any of your full names."

"Huh? You have two abilities?"

"Yes. Element manipulation and telepathy."

"Why haven't we heard of you before?"

"Locked up in a laboratory and never allowed to leave. I escaped a few days ago."

"What's your esper level?"

"Supposedly level 5. I don't really know."

At this, Misaka and Touma stopped firing questions and gaped at her. "Another level 5?"

"Yes."

"What's with Academy City these days?"

"Considering the relationship you seem to have with the Railgun, level 0, you haven't told her what's going to happen?"

"What!? There's no relationship between us! And I can't drag innocent people into this!"

"What are you talking about?"

Seeing Touma's pink face, Accelerator smoothly cut in, his voice derisive and cold. "For a level 5, you don't know much, do you Railgun? A war's going to be declared soon." He yawned. "I may not have any connections with the other level fives, but they probably even know something's going on. If I were to name names, I'd say you should ask Kakine or even Shokuhou."

"I don't talk to any of them!"

"You can ask the level 0 for information then. He knows more than me. Oh, and level 0, mind telling me what the magicians want with me this afternoon?"

" _Magicians?!_ "

"I'll tell you later, Biri-biri." Turning to Accelerator, Touma said: "Stiyl threatened to kill me if I asked, and Kanzaki didn't say a thing. Index doesn't know anything, so I don't know why they want me and Index with them."

"Tch, I don't even want you at Yomikawa's apartment. If it weren't for that damn magician, I wouldn't let you in."

"Uh...so you still hate me?"

"I'm not going to answer that. You are extremely annoying, though."

Meanwhile, Misaka was conversing with Shizuka again.

"How did you meet the strongest esper?"

"He saved my life. I was attacked and left to die by some mercenaries hired by the lab, but he fought them off and saved me."

"He...saved someone?"

"'He also saved MISAKA and the MISAKA network,' says MISAKA as MISAKA interrupts." Ignoring Misaka's astonished look, Last Order began explaining the whole thing, starting with her meeting Accelerator and ending with him getting shot in the head. "'Accelerator-san has really changed. MISAKA thinks he really wants to protect the last 10000 clones.' Says MISAKA as MISAKA ends the story."

Before Misaka could speak, a pale hand chopped Last Order on the head, causing her to yelp in surprise and pain.

"How many times have I told you to stop spilling the story of why I'm a cripple to people, brat?"

"'MISAKA thinks Onee-sama should know, since she didn't know why.' Says MISAKA as MISAKA states her opinion."

"Tsukiko, I'm going to say this word just once, but please keep the brat busy while I settle things with the Railgun. It won't take long." Noting the serious look on Accelerator's face, Shizuka nodded. Taking Last Order by the hand, she led the little girl back to the park.

Accelerator turned to Misaka, who was looking at him apprehensively. He sighed, and rubbed the back of his neck. This was not going to be easy for him.

"What do you want with me?"

"To settle things. Maybe so you won't try to kill me the next time I'm alone, considering my weakened state. Although that probably won't turn out well for the brat's well-being."

"What's there to settle besides you killing 10000 of my sisters?"

"Nothing else. Unless you found another score to settle."

"Why do you want to settle things? I thought you hated me."

"It should be the other way around. I never hated you. I didn't even know you back then." Trying to choke the words out with a bitter taste in his mouth, he finally managed: "I'm sorry for causing you grief when I killed your clones, okay?"

Misaka stared at him. "You just apologized."

"I'm not saying it again." Accelerator's tone of voice had returned to its cold hostility. "I had no idea it was supposed to turn out like this. I may be turning the blame right now, but you were the one who gave them you DNA map."

Misaka sighed. "They tricked me into thinking I was helping out sick people. Instead, it turned into a living nightmare."

"After killing your clones so many times, I probably lost all my sense of humanity. That brat jerked me back to reality when I rescued her." He let out a harsh laugh. "And then I got turned into a cripple."

"You also saved the rest of my sisters through Last Order, right?"

"Indirectly."

"Should I say thank you?"

"I don't need your gratitude, considering I killed the first 10000 of them. I don't care if you don't forgive me. Maybe my redemption right now is taking care of the damn brat. Maybe not."

Getting off the swing, he grabbed his crutch and turned his back to Misaka and Touma, heading towards Shizuka and Last Order. Halfway through, he turned back to Touma. "Tell the magician about Tsukiko. She also has a spell in her head."

Surprised, all Touma could do was nod. As the two watched Accelerator stalk off to the park, Misaka felt like a huge weight had been lifted off her chest. Remembering something, electricity started sparking off her as she turned to Touma.

"What's this about magicians, Kamijou Touma?"

"Uh..." Was all he got to say before she started chasing him again.

"What have you been keeping from me, huh?!"

"Calm down, Misaka-san! I wasn't allowed to say anything! And I was trying to protect you!"

Accelerator watched amusedly as Mikoto chased Touma out of the park, snickering quietly.

"The score's been settled?" Shizuka was walking toward him, Last Order by her side.

"For now."

"Looks like you guys have some really bad history," Shizuka observed.

"First time she saw me was when I brutally murdered the 9982nd clone of hers in that level 6 project. She tried killing me, but none of her attacks worked. I even planned on killing her to reduce the number of clones to kill since it was getting boring back then, but her clones stopped me. Since then, she's hated me."

"You've changed now, though."

He chuckled derisively. "You haven't seen me back then. I was killing without a thought, and my sanity had probably also cracked."

"It wasn't technically your fault. The scientists were the ones telling you that you had to kill them to achieve level 6."

"True. Yoshikawa told me if there was a way to make me a level 6 without the clones, they would have used it. I still had a choice to not participate." He sighed.

"At least you two don't seem to be hating each other anymore."

"Something tells me we all need to be on good terms before the war."

"We?"

"All the level 5s. Did the scientists implant any information about them in you?"

"Surprisingly, no names. Just appearance and ability. First-ranked is you, second is some guy with the ability Dark Matter..?"

"Kakine Teitoku."

"Third is the Railgun, so we just met her. Misaka Mikoto, right? The original with the sisters?"

"Yeah. The brat's the younger version of her."

"I noticed. Fourth is the...Meltdowner?"

"Mugino Shizuri."

"Fifth is Mental Out."

"Shokuhou Misaki. Her ability is similar to your telepathic one."

"Apparently she's in the same school as Misaka-san."

"Not like I care."

"How do you know all their names?"

"A level 5 is supposed to know who the other level 5s are, considering there are only 7 of them. Well, 8 now, including you, but you were kept a secret."

"There's nothing in the information about number 6."

"Nobody knows if number 6 actually exists, but everybody's insisting that esper exists."

"Seventh, presumed ability is called Attack Crash."

"Sogiita Gunha. Nobody knows the name of his ability or what it actually is, but I've seen it once and it was pretty damn confusing. Confusing, but powerful."

"And that's all."

"Looks like you're number 8. Considering your abilities, you might rival Kakine for 2nd. If not, then third. Railgun isn't that strong. Couldn't even hit me the last time we battled."

"Considering your deflection ability, no one can hit you unless it's Imagine Breaker. Also, you're saying I can't beat you in a fight?"

"I took control over your wind."

"Fine, I'll need to work on my control." Grimacing in horror at a sudden image in her mind, she changed the subject. "The image of Kakine the scientists put into my head...he looks kind of creepy."

"Never met him, so I don't know. Considering his ability, he would look creepy."

"You say you know who they are, but you never met him?"

"I learned about them and their abilities. Never met them in real life except for Railgun and Attack Crash, and that was from a distance."

"Why don't you call them by their names?"

"Don't feel like it. Especially Railgun."

"Alright then."

Last Order, who had been silent the entire time, suddenly spoke up. "'MISAKA wants to go home,' says MISAKA as MISAKA interrupts the conversation."

Accelerator pulled out his phone and checked the time. "It's 11:45. Let's go back then."

"I wonder what Yoshikawa's up to."

"Considering that we know she knows about magic, I wouldn't be surprised if she was doing something else instead of being glued to her computer." Turning around, he strode out of the park. Shizuka and Last Order hurried to follow him.

 _In England_

The Archbishop of Necessarius, Laura Stuart, sat at her table drinking tea. At the sound of footsteps, she put her teacup down and turned to face the person striding to her table. The tall figure was covered with a long black cloak with the hood down, completely covering the person's head and face. Laura smiled.

"It's so nice of you to join me for tea."

"Don't be so frivolous. You know why I'm here."

Laura picked up her teacup and took a sip. "Is it time yet?"

"In Japan Standard Time, no. Eleven or twelve more hours, approximately."

"Will the spell break the seal without any damage to his mind?"

"You do insult me, Archbishop. I have made sure that he will not be traumatized at all. As for the girl, she'll be fine as well. It's up to them to accept the truth as it is."

"Is there any change in news about Index Librorum Prohibitorum or the Imagine Breaker?"

"The Imagine Breaker still remains and will certainly fight for the Science side, and Index Librorum Prohibitorum will definitely side with him. You should know that."

Laura took another sip of tea, and then poured some more into her cup. "Have you foreseen the outcome of the war?"

"Fragments, but they do not show the end of the war. You still have not told us if we will fight with the Catholics or for the Science Side."

"We will stay neutral."

"You say that, yet you still allow Stiyl Magnus and Kanzaki Kaori to remain in Academy City."

"They can do as they wish. I will not send others to aid either side unless they go of their own volition."

"So you're basically saying you'll stay neutral, but you won't make the magicians here stay neutral?"

"I'd rather not restrict them."

"You're making no sense whatsoever. Well, am I allowed to leave now?"

"So you're finally keeping your end of the promise you made to your brother."

"I owe him. If he were still alive, he would have killed me for what happened to his boy, even if that was supposed to happen. He was very protective of his son."

Laura sighed. "Such a pity that he died. He was one of the greatest magicians of Necessarius and our strongest diviner, although you're not far behind. Well, you can leave. However, Aleister Crowley would know at once of your presence once you step into that city."

"Does he even know me?"

"Perhaps you should ask him yourself. You can pay a visit to him, although I would not recommend that."

"Are you sure he is not aware of what will happen?"

Laura gave an elegant shrug of her shoulders. "He has been silent of late and does not talk to me. Even if he knows, he will not tell me."

"What happens if he does know?"

"I doubt it will affect his plans."

"My brother played a very dangerous game with science and magic eighteen years ago. He said it was predestined to happen, what he saw in the future. If there is war, whichever side has his son fighting in it will surely win, if he isn't killed first."

"And that is why you are going to Academy City to guide and guard your nephew and his companions. I suggest you leave now. You did tell me your flight is in a few hours."

"One more question. When will the Roman Catholic Church declare war?"

"They are gathering resources for a strong attack front. It will take them a few weeks, and then they will issue the official declaration to Academy City."

"I see. I will take my leave now."

"Do tell Stiyl and Kanzaki that they are free to do as they wish."

The figure nodded once and strode off. Laura returned to drinking her tea, gazing out into the lush garden. "Aleister Crowley, I doubt even this is in your plans for Academy City."

 **Review, follow/favourite please!**

 **~goddessofshadows7212**


	8. Secrets Revealed

**I'm so sorry for not updating in two weeks. I got pretty busy with class and exams and no internet… Yeah, I know these are just excuses, but I'm super sorry. To compensate, I already have chapter 9 and 10 done, which will be posted in minutes after chapter 8.**

"'Tadaima!' Says MISAKA as MISAKA enters the apartment." After taking off her shoes, Last Order went to her room.

"Oh, welcome back, you three." Yoshikawa was sitting on the couch, engrossed in a thick book.

"Hey Yoshikawa, what are you reading?"

"Oh, this?" She held up the cover for Shizuka to see. "Just a book on magic."

"A few days ago, you would have tried to hide the book and deny everything we asked about it." Accelerator glanced at the cover of the book, noting the strange-looking symbols etched on the leather-bound cover.

"Things have changed. Besides, I'm reading up on the churches, just in case there's anything we need to know before the war."

"Anything on Necessarius?"

"Hmm, let me see." Flipping through a few pages, Yoshikawa scanned through the passages. After a few seconds, she stopped and put her finger on a page. "The English Anglican Church, known as Necessarius, the Church of Necessary Evil. It was formed mainly to track down and apprehend rogue magicians in England. The magicians there are diviners, elementalists, scholars, and combat magicians."

"Magicians fighting magicians?" Shizuka looked surprised.

"How else can you bring down rogue magicians?"

"Where did you get this book from?"

"It was a gift."

Accelerator didn't seem too satisfied with the answer, but nevertheless, he didn't push the subject.

"Anyways, what do you want for lunch?" Yoshikawa put the book down and got up.

"I don't care, I'm not hungry."

"Too bad, I'm betting the girls are."

"I don't really mind what's for lunch."

"'MISAKA doesn't mind either,' answers MISAKA as MISAKA reenters the room."

"Accelerator's been rubbing off on you two, hasn't he?"

Accelerator scoffed and glared at the females. "Not my fault they can't choose what to eat."

"I'll make something simple then. Sandwiches, anybody?"

Shizuka and Last Order nodded. Accelerator shrugged.

 _30 minutes later_

Everybody, minus Accelerator, was finishing up the sandwiches when the ring of a cellphone cut through the air. Taking his phone out of his pocket, Accelerator flipped it open and checked the caller ID. Unsurprised, he pressed the answer button, and held the phone to his ear.

"I suppose you want to talk to Tsukiko?"

"So you did read my note. Please pass the phone to her."

Accelerator tossed his phone to Shizuka, who deftly caught it. She raised an eyebrow in question.

"It's Yomikawa." She nodded and put the phone to her ear.

"Yomikawa?"

"Hey there, Tsukiko."

"Accelerator said you wanted to speak to me?"

"Yeah."

"Any news from the raid?"

"Not to our surprise, the place was abandoned. However, they seemed to have left everything there."

"I see."

"We also found some items that seem to belong to you, Tsukiko."

"Really? What did you find? I don't recall bringing anything there though."

"A photo album, a blue dress that would fit Last Order, and a silver locket. Your name was on all three items."

"Have you looked through the album?"

"It's been sealed with something strange. None of us were able to open it."

"Then how did you know it was an album?"

"There were words written on the cover."

"Did you open the locket?"

"Same situation as the album. I suspect only you can open them."

"I see. When are you guys coming back?"

She heard a snort of derision from Yomikawa."Even though the raid is done, they're not letting us go yet. Something about tracking down the escapees. I doubt I'll be back until 7."

"That's really long though. Any messages to pass on to the rest of us?"

"Now that we have the items belonging to you, Anti-Skill and Judgment know that you exist. I suggest you lie low for a few days. I don't have any other things to say. Bye." There was a click, indicating that Yomikawa had hung up.

Shizuka tossed the phone back to Accelerator. He had a quizzical look on his face as he pocketed his phone.

"What's this about a photo album and a locket?"

"Apparently Yomikawa found some of my belongings in the lab I was in when Anti-Skill and Judgment raided it today."

"How would she know they were yours?" Yoshikawa looked skeptical.

"Had my name written all over it. By the way, Tsukiko Shizuka is my real name."

"Well, now we don't have to call you by anything else. I've gotten used to calling you Tsukiko."

"My request is a little late, but please, just call me Shizuka."

"Fine by me." The answer came from Accelerator, not Yoshikawa.

"I'm surprised you're the first one to agree."

Accelerator pretended to not hear her statement as Last Order and Yoshikawa also voiced their agreement.

Suddenly, they heard the doorbell ring. Yoshikawa got up to open the door.

"Sorry to disturb you, Yoshikawa-san!" The bright tone came from Komoe, who led a group of people into the room.

"They're all magicians from Necessarius? With the exception of Kamijou Touma?"

"Yup."

"How did you know we were from Necessarius?" Kanzaki entered, holding her sword.

"I have my sources," said Yoshikawa, holding up her book.  
Stiyl looked mildly surprised. "Where did you get that? You are clearly not a magician."

"A gift."

"Anyways, why did I have to come again?" Touma had a look that was practically screaming "I did not want to come here."

"For once, I'll agree with the level 0. Why did you bring him here?" Accelerator had an annoyed look on his face.

"We have our reasons."

Trying to play peacemaker, Komoe said: "Anyways, why don't we all introduce ourselves? Let's start with Kamijou-chan!"

"I thought we knew each other already," Touma protested.

"Then who's the blue-haired girl over there?" Komoe replied, gesturing to Shizuka.

"My name is Tsukiko Shizuka. I'd say it's nice to meet you, but I doubt this meeting will be nice. I am an esper, level unknown, and I have two abilities, element manipulation and telepathy."

"An esper with two abilities? Is that even possible?"

"Under certain circumstances, yes. With two abilities, the esper's level should be that of a level 5's." Despite her own answer, Komoe still looked astonished. "A-anyways, I'm Tsukiyomi Komoe, and that's Kamijou-chan over there. The sister over there is Index, and the red-haired guy is Stiyl. The girl with the sword is Kanzaki. Stiyl, Kanzaki, Index, this is Yoshikawa-san, and Last Order."

Komoe was about to introduce Accelerator, but he waved his hand, dismissing her introduction. "You should know me by ability and reputation." Turning to Touma, he asked: "Hey, level 0, did you tell Stiyl about the spell?"

"Uh...I forgot."

Accelerator gave Touma a death glare and ignored his protests, which were along the lines of trying to escape Misaka Mikoto. Turning to Stiyl, he started telling him about the seals and the spells in his mind and on Shizuka's. Stiyl didn't look too surprised.

"That's the whole reason why we're here. I wasn't told about the girl over there though."

In one fluid movement, Kanzaki stepped in front of Shizuka and studied her, looking at Shizuka's face hard. Shizuka stared back, refusing to look away. After a few minutes, Kanzaki looked away and turned to Index and Stiyl.

"Spending months here must have dulled your sight, Stiyl. You too, Librorum Prohibitorum. Tsukiko Shizuka has the distinctive aura of magic around her."

Everyone besides Kanzaki and Accelerator looked surprised on different degrees. Accelerator had a blank look on his face, masking any shock he felt initially. Stiyl had a somewhat ashamed and surprised look on his face. Index, Touma, Komoe and Last Order had identical expressions of shock, while Yoshikawa didn't look too surprised. Shizuka herself looked half astonished and half frightened.

Collecting himself, Stiyl spoke to Kanzaki. "How did you know?"

"The magic aura is very faint from years of suppression, but it's still there. Look for yourself."

Index and Stiyl studied Shizuka for a minute, and then they both nodded. Getting over her shock, Shizuka asked tentatively: "What does it mean to have the aura of magic around me?"

"Either you're a magician or your parents were magicians. Same thing goes for the first-ranked esper over there."

Upon hearing this news, Touma's mouth dropped open and he stared at Accelerator. Accelerator gave him a look of pure disdain and looked away. "I already know one of my birth parents was a magician. You people can stop flaunting the fact."

"How do you know?" Yoshikawa exclaimed.

"The archangel told me."

"So it's true; you have an archangel watching over you."

"He told me his name was Michael. At least that's what I heard."

"The leader of the army of angels," Index breathed. She looked at Accelerator with what seemed like awe.

"Well, why did you come here? You guys did say you had some stuff to tell me."

"Not technically things to speak about. It's more like we're here to maintain secrecy while the seals break."

"What's so secret about all this?"

"Eighteen years ago, a diviner in Necessarius foresaw a war between science and magic. The visions showed him that only a child born of science and magic could turn the tide of the war. If that child was not born, the war would be a very long, drawn-out war and there would be great losses on both sides. Whichever side has that child fighting for them would win the war, and find a way for science and magic to coexist. As he was one of the most powerful magicians two decades ago, he fulfilled the vision himself. Now, you must know that the blood of science and magic mixing is a great taboo in this world. If such a child were to exist, both sides would reject the child, and try to dispose of him or her as quickly as possible. The diviner knew that, and still took it upon himself to fulfill the vision in secret. He traveled to Academy City, fell in love, and married a woman there. They had one child, who eventually became the first-ranked esper. Sound familiar to you, Accelerator?"

Accelerator was silent for a while, and then he asked: "That kid is me, right? And I'm supposing the diviner was my birth father?"

"You're getting it now. If any word of this had come out, you would have been killed a long time ago, most likely by Aleister Crowley's hands or the Roman Catholic Church. That's why your memories were erased as well, so you'd remember nothing about magic, and instead be raised as a pure child of science."

"What happened to my parents?"

"They disappeared off the records around 14 years ago. Nobody knows what happened, but it's suspected that they were killed."

"Who's my birth mother then? Is she just a resident in Academy City or is she an esper?"

"We have no idea. Well, one person knows, but I can't contact him right now. He's unreachable at the moment."

"Who?"

"Your father's younger brother. He is a Necessarius member, and the diviner I told you about."

"I see." Accelerator stayed silent after that, his face blank except for the usual glare if Touma happened to make eye contact with him.

"What does Shizuka have to do with this then?" Yoshikawa asked.

Kanzaki spoke this time. "We don't know much. From what our sources tell us, Tsukiko Shizuka is the daughter of two magicians, but they gave up the magician life and lived in Academy City. I don't know if they knew Accelerator's parents though. With circumstances like that, it was only a matter of time and chance before the two met."

Shizuka spoke up, her voice quiet. "Do you know who my parents are?"

"No. We do know they were elementalists and combat magicians though, which means your elemental skill must have been inherited. That's pretty much the rarest thing to happen in magic."

"Then what of my telepathic skill?"

"I believe Shizuka-chan was put through the esper curriculum, and was able to manifest a scientific ability. Is that true, Shizuka-chan?" Komoe asked.

Shizuka nodded.

Stiyl spoke again. "When the seals break inside your minds, a large wave of magic will be released and will most likely disrupt life in Academy City, and alert Aleister Crowley to the fact that Accelerator is also a child of magic. This will also alert the Roman Catholic Church, which will make lives all the more dangerous for all of you. To prevent that, we brought along Librorum Prohibitorum and Kamijou."

"Stiyl, you never told me what I was supposed to do." Index said in an irritated tone.

"Oh, I didn't? Sorry. To prevent the wave of magic to spread, anti-magic and magic-containing spells need to be put up. There should be some powerful ones in the 103,000 grimoires you have, so put them up."

"Then what's the point of bringing me? I don't think I'm wanted here by the first-ranked." Touma looked over at Accelerator again, but Accelerator shot him another death glare and closed his eyes, deliberately looking away.

"You two have to deal with each other. I'm not sure if anything bad will happen along the way, so I brought you to negate any magic that may go wrong."

"How long will the seal-breaking last?" Yoshikawa asked.

"That's not important right now. Right now, I need a lot of time to set up the correct magical circles and spells. This may take a few hours." Index got up and looked around the room, noting the places of the furniture. She turned to Yoshikawa.

"How many rooms are in here?"

"There's the kitchen, we're currently in the living room, and that hallway over there leads to 4 rooms. 3 bedrooms and a bathroom."

"Please show me the rooms and tell me which person sleeps in which bedroom."

Yoshikawa led Index out of the room. The rest of the group sat in awkward silence. After a few minutes, Accelerator broke the silence with a question to Last Order.

"Hey brat, what are you going to make of this?"

"'MISAKA is very surprised,' says MISAKA as MISAKA voices her honest opinion. 'However, Accelerator-chan and Shizuka-chan are still the same people to me.'"

"I see. Considering all the information and the network, do all the clones know?"

"'Yes. However, MISAKA has told the Sisters to keep everything secret.' Says MISAKA as MISAKA finishes her report."

In an extremely rare once-in-a-lifetime gesture of affection, Accelerator reached over and ruffled the young girl's hair. "Good job, brat."

Last Order stared at him, not comprehending what just happened, but finally she smiled and hugged him hard, refusing to let go. Everybody minus Shizuka was staring at the pair, while Shizuka was smiling. The moment was abruptly broken when Index's voice was heard.

"Stiyl, Kanzaki, please come over here. You two, Accelerator and Shizuka."

"Coming!"

Stiyl got up and strode into the hallway, Kanzaki following closely after. After a few tries, Shizuka pried Last Order off Accelerator and they went into the hallway.

Index and Yoshikawa met the group in Accelerator's bedroom. Index spoke to Accelerator. "You sleep here with Last Order?"

"Yeah."

Index stood in thought. Seemingly coming to a decision, she asked Yoshikawa: "Is it possible for Accelerator and Tsukiko to share a room while the seals break? This way, it would be easier to contain the magic."

"You're going to have to ask them. And Last Order as well."

Index turned to the trio and repeated the same question. Shizuka nodded. Accelerator merely shrugged. He didn't really care, since he knew he would be in a coma anyways. After some hesitation, Last Order also agreed.

"Alright then. Tsukiko, please move the things you need to this room. Kanzaki, help her out. As for Last Order, can you go with Yoshikawa-san to move your things to Tsukiko's room? Stiyl, you can help me with the magic circles for now. This room will need the most powerful spells, so I'll need a helper. Accelerator, you can help with the moving if you want."

"No way. I'm going to watch you guys."

"Suit yourself. Oh, what should Komoe-sensei and Touma do then?"

"Let Kamijou help with the moving. Send the teacher home. I doubt Himegami likes being home alone, considering that expression she made when we told her she had to stay home."

"Okay, I'll go tell them."

Accelerator watched with indifference as the girls moved belongings in and out of the rooms. When Index returned, Stiyl offered her a strange ink-like liquid in a small container. She shook her head.

"For the spell to be extremely powerful, we have to carve the magic circle into the walls."

"What am I going to say to Aiho when she finds her walls all carved up?" Yoshikawa had overheard them.

"They'll disappear when the seals' magic fades, with no lasting damage to the walls. Stiyl, hand me a knife." Stiyl produced a long, curved silver knife within his black cloak and handed it to her. She turned to the wall and started tracing a circle on it. She added a 5-pointed star in the middle, with more circles and strange symbols. After she finished, she carved multiple runes and symbols surrounding the circle in a geometric pattern. Finally, she turned to Stiyl and Yoshikawa.

"I'll need to do this on all four sides of the wall and on the ground. If possible, I may need to carve it on the ceiling as well."

"We can get Shizuka to float you up," Accelerator said, walking over to the wall to study the magic circle. For some reason, the symbols looked strangely familiar when looking at them. He almost reached out a hand to trace the patterns, but then he heard Shizuka enter the room.

"I heard my name. What's up?"

"Apparently the magic circles need to be on the ceiling. Can you float the sister onto the ceiling?"

"How long will it take?"

"Around 5 minutes, maybe longer."

"I'll try my best." Closing her eyes, Shizuka concentrated hard. Index started wobbling hard, trying to keep her balance, but then slowly, surely, Index started rising into the air, towards the ceiling. Just before the nun could crash into the ceiling, she stopped.

"Hurry up. I can't hold this for too long." Shizuka's voice sounded strained.

Index quickly started carving with precise lines and smooth curves. After three minutes, she moved on to the symbols. "Okay, I'm done."

The nun floated down to the bed, landing with a soft thump. Shizuka collapsed and nearly hit the floor, but Accelerator caught her. "Looks like I have to catch you again. Don't strain yourself to the limit. I'm getting tired of it."

Shizuka smiled weakly. "That took more out of me than I thought. Just...need...some sleep..." Was all she managed out before she slumped, unconscious. Accelerator quickly set her down on the bed.  
"Is she alright?" Index hovered over Shizuka, concerned.

"She needs some rest. The element of air is her weaker element."

"Well, I guess I can finish the rest of the magic circles. I'll need the exact same pattern for every room."

"Including the bathroom?" Yoshikawa asked.

"Yes."

"Don't tell me you'll need to do the ceiling as well for all of them."

"Just this room, since it has to contain the most magic." Turning back to her work, Index carved the same magic circle on the rest of the walls. "One more request: please move the beds out of the way so I can draw the circle directly beneath them."

Stiyl and Yoshikawa obliged and shifted the beds away, and then put them back after Index finished.

"I'll work on the next room. Stiyl, are you able to draw the circles?"

"Might take some time, but I think it's possible."

"Help me out then."

"We're done with the moving, Index."

"That's all for now, then."

"I don't think there's anything else you can do then. Go back to the living room; I'll make some snacks and tea." Yoshikawa added, exiting the room.

"'What happened to Shizuka-san?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA looks at Shizuka-san worriedly."

"She spent too much energy helping me with the magic circles. She'll be fine."

"Go join the others, brat. Shizuka's going to be fine." With a final concerned glance at Shizuka, Last Order exited the room.

Accelerator turned back to Shizuka. He sighed. She was definitely a handful. He recalled the memory she had shared with him back at the park. Back then, it still seemed like he was a troubled, angry child who got bullied a lot, but his deflection ability always threw them off. He remembered that Stiyl said his parents only disappeared 14 years ago, when he was four. The boy in that memory looked around 6 years old. What had happened in the two years between?

"What are you thinking so hard about?" Shizuka asked, opening her eyes.

"Nothing. Well, looks like you woke up."

She groaned in irritation. "I really need to work on controlling the element of air. Oh well, at least I didn't drop the nun."

"Thanks to you, she finished the magic circles in this room. Look around."

Shizuka sat up and glanced around the room. "Well, Yomikawa's in for a nice surprise when she comes back and finds the walls all carved up."

"That's what Yoshikawa said. Well, as long as they work, I don't care. We'll be in comas anyways."

"True. Where are the others?"

"Living room."

"How about we join them?"

"Fine. Just saying, you're the one who scared the brat this time."

"Seems like I always have someone worrying for me. Poor girl."

"Tch, you're her favourite person right now. Of course she'd worry."

"Don't be like that. She worries for you as well."

"I don't need people worrying for me."

"You're such a handful."

"You're more of a handful than I am," he shot back.

"Okay, we're both handfuls. Come on, let's go to the living room."

Accelerator strode to the door and waited for Shizuka to get out of the bed, and then the two went to the living room.

 _In the living room_ **(I had to do a somewhat short time-skip, the previous scene had gone on for far too long)**

Everyone looked up when Accelerator and Shizuka entered the living room. Yoshikawa smiled at the two.

"Looks like you're awake, Shizuka. How are you feeling?"

"A little tired, but I've been worse. Thanks for asking." She and Accelerator sat on the couch next to Last Order, who promptly turned and grinned at Shizuka.

Index and Stiyl entered the room. Index spoke. "We've finished the carving in all the rooms. The rest we have to do is to stick a few more rune cards on the walls of the living room, kitchen and door, and that should be it. Remind me, what day is it?"

"August 17."

"Hmm...August 18. 8-1-8. The year is 2018, right?"

Everyone nodded.

"A palindrome. Combined with the powers of Leo, tomorrow is definitely a powerful and auspicious day."

Touma looked confused. "What's palindromes got to do with all this?"

Stiyl scoffed. "This many months with magicians and you still have no idea. Mathematics is important in magic."

"Oh, right."

"Anyways, right now, it's 5:30 pm," said Index, checking the clock. Everyone reacted with surprise. "We have six hours and 30 minutes until midnight."

"We were told that the seals would break at midnight. Luckily, we pretty much have all the preparations ready."

"So what do we do now?" Shizuka asked.

"We wait. Stiyl, Kanzaki, please help me put up the rune cards." Stiyl and Kanzaki got up and started to help Index out.

"That's boring. I'm not going to spend six hours doing nothing and then go into a coma." Accelerator had an extremely disinterested look on his face.

"Then what do you propose we should do?"

"Anything but sitting around. You seem perfectly content though. Time-wasters." He scoffed.

"Oh, stop fighting already. Hey Kikyou, mind telling me who all these people are?" Amidst all the conversation, they didn't hear the door unlock and see Yomikawa step in.

"Magicians from Necessarius and that's Kamijou Touma, which you should know from your school. I suppose you didn't get a message from Komoe. Anyways, Aiho, I thought you wouldn't be back until 7."

Yomikawa scoffed. "We weren't allowed to leave. But then after so many fruitless searches, Judgment left, so we were forced to call it off, since they made up a large part of our group. Pampered brats. Anyways, Tsukiko, I brought your stuff. Here you go." She handed Shizuka a semi-large gift bag.

Shizuka opened the bag slowly and reached inside. She pulled out a large leather-bound photo album and set it on the table. A silver locket and a blue dress followed. Everyone leaned forward, interested. Shizuka held up the blue dress, smoothing out the wrinkles. She handed it to Last Order.

"Think you can wear that?"

"'MISAKA doesn't know, but MISAKA can try it,' says MISAKA as MISAKA looks at the dress."

"It's a good dress. You can keep it. Probably too small for me now anyways."

Last Order took the dress and looked at it carefully. The dress was made of dark blue linen, and had white flowers embroidered on the hem of the dress. On the sleeve, Shizuka's full name was embroidered in tiny kanji characters. She hugged the dress to her chest.

"'Thanks a lot Shizuka-san!' Says MISAKA as MISAKA expresses her gratitude."

"You're welcome. It was my favourite dress. Now, what else is there?" Shizuka picked up the locket and examined it closely. The front of the locket had her initials carved on there. Carefully, she pried open the locket. Inside were 2 photos. The photo on the left side had 3 people in it: a man, and a woman holding a tiny baby. The one on the right was of a little blue-haired blue-eyed girl around 6 or 7 standing with a young white-haired red-eyed boy. Both had smiles on their faces, although the girl's smile looked more natural. Once she saw the photos, Shizuka dropped the locket.

"Oi, what did you do that for?" Accelerator caught it before it crashed to the floor, and dangled the locket in front of her face.

"Sorry. The pictures startled me."

Accelerator flipped the locket over and took a look at the photos. When his eyes landed on the right-hand photo, they widened. "Is that me?"

"Who else would know me and have white hair and red eyes?"

"Don't distinguish me by my appearance!"

"Oh? Let us see." Yoshikawa and Yomikawa went over to the couch and peered at the photos. "That's Accelerator as a seven year old, no doubt. Which means the little girl is Shizuka."

"They both look really cute. Even Accelerator."

"Shut up!" Accelerator had a faint pink tint to his cheeks which could easily be defined as blushing from embarrassment.

"'MISAKA thinks they're both cute,' says MISAKA as MISAKA looks at the photo."

Accelerator turned his choker on and reflected all the sound waves, effectively cutting off all outside noise and any other comments about his 7-year-old self. He settled back onto the couch, sending death glares at everyone who was looking at the locket. Finally, Shizuka put him out of his misery by closing the locket. She put her hand on his shoulder and sent a thought-message.

 _You can stop reflecting the sound waves now._ Accelerator scowled, but turned his choker off. Shizuka gave him a devilish grin.

"Now, that wasn't so bad, was it?"

He groaned. "You have no idea." To his benefit, Touma hadn't moved from his seat, but stared confusedly at all of them. Accelerator gave him a sadistic, but superior smirk and had the satisfaction of seeing the level 0 flinch.

Ignoring him, Shizuka picked up the photo album and ran her hands over the worn leather cover. To her surprise, the cover glowed with a faint blue light, and then the book opened by itself. On the first page was a photo of the same couple as the one in the locket. Steeling her nerves, she called Kanzaki and Stiyl. The two magicians hurried over. Shizuka held up the picture album.

"Are these my parents? Do you know who they are?"

Kanzaki studied the picture. Then she spoke. "I recognize both of them. Yes, they are your parents. The man is Tsukiko Chihiro and the woman is Mizuki Hikaru. Chihiro's a water and fire elementalist, and Hikaru's an earth elementalist and a combat magician. They were members of the Amakusa Church."

"From the generation of magicians before you came along, right?" Stiyl asked.

"Yeah. Nevertheless, these are your parents, Shizuka." Kanzaki and Stiyl went back to Index's side.

Shizuka stared at the photo, desperately trying to recall any memories of her parents. Unfortunately, she didn't. She went back to studying her parents' features. Tsukiko Chihiro had short blue hair, sparkling jade green eyes, a tall, muscular build and a smile that was full of playfulness. Mizuki Hikaru had long silver hair, sapphire blue eyes and a graceful, slender figure. She had a gentle smile on her face that seemed to radiate kindness even from the photo.

Accelerator and Last Order looked over at the photo. "'MISAKA thinks Shizuka-san looks like both her mother and father,' says MISAKA as MISAKA looks at the photo."

"The brat's right. You resemble your parents to a great deal." Was it her imagination, or did she hear a note of bitterness in his normally expressionless tone? "Well, that does explain why your control over air isn't too good. If the magician's right, you inherited all the elemental skills except for air."

"True." Shizuka flipped to the next page. There she found some photos that made her slam the book shut, which sent a plume of dust spiraling into the air. Everyone around the couch started coughing hard. Accelerator stopped, and wiped his mouth on his sleeve.

"What was _that_ for?" He demanded.

"Sorry. Just some photos that are _private_ ," she said, putting extreme emphasis on the word "private".

"Give us a warning next time, will you?" Yomikawa waved the dust away from her face. "Anyways, what's for dinner, Kikyou?"

"I'm not cooking for that many people, Aiho. Let's call for some pizza or something."

"Fine with me. 4 pizzas are enough?"

"Should be."

Yomikawa took out her cellphone and made a call. After that, Touma got up abruptly and approached her.

"Hey, Yomikawa-sensei, how do you know about magic?"

"Same reason as Kikyou, which I'd rather not say."

"If it's fine with you, can I leave? It's a little crowded."

Before Yomikawa could reply, she heard Stiyl's voice. "You're not leaving, Kamijou. I said you're needed for later."

"What am I supposed to do? I can't help out with anything."

"That's not my problem. Not to mention I think Index would attack you as soon as you step out the door for leaving her."

"Such misfortune," Touma muttered as he went back to his seat, tripping over a bump on the rug and landing flat on his face.

Accelerator stifled a laugh. "Why don't you call Railgun over here to keep you company, level 0?"

Touma promptly turned red when he sat up. "She nearly killed me for not telling her about magic. And then her roommate from Tokiwadai turned up and tried to kill me for hanging around her 'precious Onee-sama.'"

Shizuka started giggling, while Accelerator was trying hard not to laugh out loud. After a few seconds, Shizuka stopped. "What's Tokiwadai?"

"It's a prestigious boarding school for girls. Misaka-san goes there."

"Oh, I see."

"So's Mental Out, if you haven't forgotten, Shizuka."

"Mental Out? So you mean Tokiwadai's Queen, Shoukuhou Misaki?" Touma looked kind of surprised that Accelerator would know.

"Fifth-ranked, Mental Out, Queen, Shoukuhou, call her whatever you want. I don't care."

"She and Misaka-san are huge rivals. Misaka-san is called the Ace of Tokiwadai."

"Am I supposed to care? Who's this roommate girl you were talking about then? Looks like someone else is out to kill you. All the better for me." He yawned.

"Oh, uh, she's a level 4 Teleporter in Judgment."

"Whatever. This conversation is getting boring."

Just as Accelerator finished speaking, the doorbell rang, indicating that the pizza had arrived. Yomikawa and Yoshikawa went to the door, the former paying and the latter carrying the pizza boxes kitchen. After a few seconds, they heard Yoshikawa's voice. "Pizza's here! Take a break and let's eat!"

"Ah, food!" Index raced into the kitchen and took 5 slices. "I'm starving!"

"Aren't you always?" Touma asked.

"You're the one who didn't get me lunch. As a result, I'm hungrier than usual."

"I said I was sorry!"

"I wish I brought Sphinx along."

"You left him with Himegami-san, remember?"

Index said no more, since she was busy wolfing down slice after slice of pizza.

Last Order and Shizuka each took 2 slices of pizza, while Accelerator only took one slice. Everybody else took 3 or 4 slices.

The general silence was broken through a series of small talk between some people. Yomikawa and Yoshikawa were discussing the next school year, while Stiyl, Kanzaki and Index were talking about the strength of the magic-sealing spells and circles. Shizuka and Last Order were talking about the Sisters network and the level 5s. Strangely enough, the two people who didn't want anything to do with each other, did the same thing: nothing. Accelerator had turned on his choker and reflected the sound waves, and closed his eyes, resting. Touma sat and methodically chewed, watching the others converse easily.

After 30 minutes, everyone finished, although their conversations kept on going on for another 30 minutes. Finally, Yomikawa got up and cleared the table and plates. "What time is it, Kikyou?" She asked.

Yoshikawa checked her watch. "7:00."

"5 more hours then," Stiyl said. "There's really nothing else for us to do. We've finished the wall carving, and we're also done with the rune cards."

Yomikawa's eyebrow started twitching. "Wall carving?"

Yoshikawa rushed to explain everything. When she was done, Yomikawa sighed. "Geez. All this for a magic seal breaking? You're sure you won't destroy my apartment walls?"

"The carvings will fade, and your walls will be back to normal. No lasting damage."

"And the cards?"

"Not permanent. I'll remove them when they've done their job." Stiyl replied.

"And if we don't do this, Academy City would be destroyed?"

"Pretty much."

Yomikawa sighed in defeat. "Okay, do whatever you want. But I'm putting my foot down if you guys insist on blasting the apartment to pieces."

"We won't do anything like that."

"Good."

"Anyways, what are we supposed to do for the next 5 hours?"

"'MISAKA wants to watch a movie,' says MISAKA as MISAKA overhears the conversation."

"Well, that'll certainly work. It should keep everyone busy for a while."

"What movie then?"

"I'll take a look at what I have," Yomikawa said, walking over to the cabinet under the television.

"Should I wake up Accelerator?" Shizuka asked.

"Leave him be; I'd rather not have him get into any fights with Kamijou."

"Alright then."

Stiyl and Kanzaki declined to watching a movie, claiming they had some other things to do before midnight. They disappeared outside. Index and Touma readily agreed to join in. Yomikawa popped in a DVD, and the movie started.

 _2 movies later-10:30 pm_

Index and Last Order had fallen asleep on the floor during the second movie. Yomikawa carried Last Order to Shizuka's bedroom, and Touma moved Index to Accelerator's room for later. Surprisingly, Accelerator hadn't moved a bit, or so it seemed to them. Shizuka went to her room, and Yoshikawa went to her room.

When they had all left the living room, Accelerator turned off his choker and stood up, cracking his stiff neck. Grabbing his crutch, he scrawled out a short note and headed outside. Once he was outside of the apartment, he took a few stairways and ladders onto the roof.

Outside, he looked out at the expanse of Academy City. Even at night, the buildings were still illuminated with electric lights. Looking up, he still managed to see a few stars despite the light pollution. He let out a rueful sigh. He had certainly gotten himself into a nice mess. In less than 2 hours, his life would change forever. According to what Stiyl said, he'd be the major factor in the war.

"Did I really want this? Well, this was probably planned out at the very beginning." There were so many "what ifs" spinning around in his head.

 _What if_ _I hadn't stormed outside when Yoshikawa was telling us about our pasts? What if I never participated in the Level 6 Shift Project? What if I killed all the clones? What if I never took a walk on that night Shizuka was attacked?_ Lost in his thoughts, he didn't hear the voices until the last second.

"-got to be kidding me, Stiyl."

"I wouldn't be lying about something this big, Kanzaki."

 _Crap, the magicians are up here as well?!_ Accelerator dove behind a large metal box that housed the fans. Turning on his choker, he directed the sound waves of their conversation to himself. Staying absolutely still, he listened.

"You mean to be telling me that Izumi-san's coming here _right now_?"

 _Huh? Who's this Izumi guy?_

"For the millionth time, yes. He got off the phone with me a few minutes before you decided to join me. After he finds a way to sneak past the security here completely untraced, he's coming here."

"For what? Don't tell me he thinks we're not enough backup."

"He told me he's only here for Accelerator."

 _Who the hell is this Izumi guy and what does he want with me?!_

"For what reason?"

"A simple family matter, if you haven't already forgotten. After all, he is Accelerator's father's brother."

 _You've got to be joking right now, magician. My uncle?_

"The simple word 'uncle' would have sufficed."

"From what he told me, Archbishop Laura even let him go. He's only here to guide Accelerator and Tsukiko Shizuka in magic and act as a guard as well."

"'Only here to guide'? Considering he told us he hasn't seen Accelerator ever since he was taken into that Institute, I thought even that cold hearted diviner would at least try to act as a family member."

"How many times have I reminded you, Kanzaki? Losing his older brother and sister-in-law was a tragedy he never recovered from _._ He doesn't want to get close to anyone again, even his own flesh and blood. At least that's what he told me."

 _Right, they did say my parents died._

"Apparently time doesn't heal all wounds then."

"Anyways, I've told you everything he told me. Well, and he says Archbishop Laura will stay neutral, but we are free to do as we wish."

"Fine by me. Let's go back."

Once they headed off, Accelerator slid his back down the metal wall and sat on the ground, head spinning yet again. So his birth father's brother was coming. Another person from his past that he didn't remember. Someone related to him.

 _Is there any point in thinking like this when my memories return in less than 2 hours?_

Getting up, he took a deep breath, calming himself. He looked out at the landscape again. Sighing, he laid down on the roof, staring at the night sky. Where was all his cool levelheadedness he had at the park? Where was his usual coldness and hostility?

 _If this is what I'm supposed to be like when I had my memories, I don't like it._

Taking out his cellphone, he checked the time. 11:20. He decided to head back in 30 minutes. As he shut off the phone screen, he caught his reflection on the blank screen. He examined himself. Tired red eyes, an exhausted expression, and an air of defeat around him. He slid the phone into his pocket.

"Damn, I look so pathetic right now. Maybe I should relinquish the title of the first. I'm not supposed to be like this. What the hell has happened to me?"

He laid back down on the metal roof, letting the warm summer night envelope him in a dark, peaceful silence.


	9. Accelerator has an uncle?

**This is mainly a filler, although it features my OC. Guess where the name comes from and you can put some of your ideas in the plot (Not too crazy, please!). Next up on chapter 10 is some stuff on Accelerator's past.**

 _11:50- 10 minutes to midnight_

Almost as if on an alarm, Accelerator got up and headed back down to the apartment. When he entered, he was greeted with the sight of relieved faces from the girls.

"We were about to send someone out to search for you." Yomikawa said.

"Didn't you see my note? Geez, stop worrying about me."

Index cut in. "Anyways, It's 10 minutes to midnight. Get to your room. Once you enter a coma, no one can touch you, so I suggest you save us the trouble of trying to move you to your bed if you collapse right now."

"I get it, I get it." Accelerator strode into his room and lay down on his bed, folding his arms behind his head. He looked up at the magic circle on the ceiling. To his surprise, it was faintly glowing with a blue light. He quickly turned his head from side to side to look at the other magic circles. They were also glowing.

"The magic circles can double as a magic detector. They're glowing since traces if magic are detected on us." Shizuka entered the room and flopped onto her bed. "I'm so tired."

"How do you know all that?"

"Index told me. They didn't glow earlier because this spell works best at night."

"Where's the brat?"

"Sleeping in my room. She's fine."

"I almost envy the brat. She's a pure science person. I rather liked it better when I was just an esper, not a magical esper."

"We can't change our fates. At least you are part science. I'm a pure magic kid, but with a taint of science due to my telepathic ability. I'm not even supposed to belong in Academy City."

"You do belong. You're here, aren't you?"

"Well, I don't have any science blood in my veins. Just magic. You're the special one."

"I don't think there was a time where I wasn't special. The title of the first-ranked esper comes with the reputation of being special."

"Keep quiet now, you two. For the spell to work at its best, I have to start 5 minutes before midnight." Index entered the room and planted herself in the middle of the two beds, right in the centre of the magic circle on the ground. Glancing at the clock, it struck 11:55.

Index starting chanting in a language that sounded like Latin, but then changed to something that sounded remotely like Aramaic. The circles glowed with a stronger light, and the two espers felt a sense of restraint. Accelerator almost saw something that looked like the walls of a box. Index started chanting faster, moving her hands in patterns in the air. The blue light grew stronger, almost blinding. Shizuka looked at the doorway and saw the faint outlines of people watching the spell casting.

Index stopped chanting. The light died down, and she checked the clock: 11:59. "One minute. See you guys in a few days."

"What do you mean?"

"You'll see." The clock struck midnight. Suddenly, Accelerator felt something crack in his mind. Unbidden, the magic seal he saw a day ago swam into his mind's eye, but he saw cracks in it. The cracks grew larger, and then the seal dissipated into nothingness. Accelerator suddenly had a sensation of falling, falling into the darkness.

 _Is this what's supposed to happen?_ He thought as his vision darkened. And then he knew no more, as he collapsed into unconsciousness.

Shizuka, on the other hand, felt as though something in her mind was being released. Something that felt like a block on her mind disappeared, and multiple scenes flew into her mind, expanding until she could see nothing else but flashes of colour. Finally, the scenes cracked away into black nothingness, and she fell unconscious.

The two weren't aware that their bodies were glowing, clashing violently with the circles' light. Index was chanting again, faster and faster, and the circles' light grew stronger and blanketed the light from the espers' bodies. Finally, all the light died down to reveal the unconscious espers and the room, still in its regular state. The magic circles were pulsing with faint light. Index opened her eyes and sighed in relief. She slipped out of the room, quietly closing the door behind her.

Touma, Kanzaki, Stiyl, Yoshikawa and Yomikawa were waiting for her in the living room.

"How did it go?" Stiyl asked.

"The unleashed magic power was really strong. It took all my strength to suppress it. They should be fine for now. For now, we can do nothing but wait."

"So you're telling me you didn't need my right hand after all."

"I don't know what will happen in a few days, so you have to stick around, Touma."

"So now what can we do? I still have my job to do."

"One of us has to stay home all the time to make sure nothing happens. The rest of us are free to help or we can go about and mind our own business. What happens to the clone then?"

"Last Order? I don't think she'll leave the two alone until they wake up."

"That can't happen. Right now, only I can enter the room. Or a powerful magician. If someone else tries, there's a chance they may burn up from all the magic energy. She needs to stay away from their room."

"Well, we'll have to keep her busy then," Yomikawa said.

"Or you can send her to stay with some of the other clones," Touma suggested.

"That's a good idea. I'll call someone right now." Yoshikawa pulled out her cellphone.

"Who?"

"The doctor. Heaven Canceller. I think he's also taking care of MISAKA-10032." Tapping a few buttons, Yoshikawa stepped into the kitchen.

Yomikawa stretched. "I need to sleep. I still have work tomorrow. Do tell me if anything happens when morning comes." She headed into her room.

Kanzaki turned to Stiyl. "Did Izumi-san tell you when he was coming?"

"He didn't give me an exact time."

"12:27 AM in Japanese Standard Time, August 18th, 2018, to be exact." Everybody in the room whipped their heads around to the door. At the doorway, a figure shrouded in a black cloak stood, blending in with the shadows quite easily. The only reason they could see the figure was because of a tiny magic circle brightly glowing on the door, illuminating the person's pale hand on the knob.

"How did you unlock the door?!" Touma asked.

"A rather simple spell. Can't I get a welcome of some sorts?"

"Tell me how to welcome am extremely reclusive diviner then,' Stiyl muttered under his breath."

"The least you can do is take off your hood, Izumi. In all honesty, I didn't expect to see you here." Yoshikawa stepped out of the kitchen, looking at the figure.

"Long time no see, Yoshikawa Kikyou. Stiyl didn't tell you I was coming? No matter. I'm here to train Accelerator and Shizuka in magic." The figure drew back his hood to reveal a handsome, pale face. Accelerator's uncle, Izumi, had messy black hair, dark indigo-black eyes, and sharp, defined features. He was tall and had a lanky build. If it weren't for the jagged scar that marred the right part of Izumi's face, people could have mistaken him for an older, black-haired indigo-eyed Accelerator from far away. Up close, they could see other distinctive differences: high and defined cheekbones, slightly paler skin, and traces of old scars across his face. His eyes were cold and hard, with no trace of any cheerfulness.

"You look just like Accelerator," Touma said in surprise.

"Surprisingly, he got most of his looks from me and not my brother. The lankiness is genetic. Anyways, stop staring at me." Izumi settled on a couch, leaning against the back and crossing his legs. "Remind me again to never take a nonstop flight to Tokyo from England. My legs got horribly cramped."

"At least give us a proper introduction of yourself."

Izumi sighed. "Must I? Tedious. You know my name already. I'm a diviner and combat magician from Necessarius. And yes, I'm the younger brother of Accelerator's birth father. I'm currently one of the most powerful magicians from Necessarius, perhaps 7th ranked in the world, but I don't like flaunting that fact. And for those who haven't realized yet, I put the seals on Accelerator's and Shizuka's minds."

Everyone reacted with surprise. Seeing their expressions, Izumi groaned in irritation. "You haven't noticed? I had to do it. If it didn't happen, the future would be a whole lot more bloody. Do remember I'm a diviner."

Getting over her shock, Yoshikawa spoke. "So, what do you intend on doing once Accelerator and Shizuka wake up?"

"The family magic is combat magic. I'll train him in that. He should be fine, since the seal also unleashed his suppressed magic power. As for Shizuka, I will help her with her elemental abilities."

"I doubt Accelerator would be too good in combat if he still has to use his crutch."

Izumi's eyes darkened and narrowed to black slits. "What happened to him?"

"I thought you knew, since you said you were watching over him with your scrying ball or something like that. Even without that, I thought you would have seen it in your visions."

"I was busy dealing with a demon attack in Iceland a couple months ago. When I came back, I saw him using a crutch, but I have no idea what happened. Also, my visions of Accelerator only show him in the war, or what happened years before. I can't control them. So, WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO HIM?!"

Yoshikawa shushed him, and then quickly gave him a very short summary on what happened. Izumi's face fell. "If my brother were alive right now, he'd kill whoever was supposed to be his guardian."

"He didn't have a guardian until after he got shot."

Izumi put his face in his hands. "This complicates things by a great deal. The magic that was suppressed has a chance of restoring his body to the original state before he got shot, or it won't help."

"What are the odds?"

"Chances of his body being restored are very low. 15%, I'm estimating. Over the years, his magic power has accumulated, so it has some chance of healing his body."

"Well, it would be better if his computation skills are restored. Then his ability would be as powerful as before."

Izumi nodded. Then, he spoke to Index in a casual tone. "Oh, and Index Librorum Prohibitorum?"

"Yes?"

"I do believe if you consult the 8th Sibylline Book, a prophecy has just decoded itself."

"What?! You memorized the Sibylline Books?" Kanzaki and Stiyl looked shocked.

"They are also grimoires. I was told to memorize them." Closing her eyes, Index mentally shifted through her library of 103,000 grimoires.

"How did you know there was a prophecy that was going to be decoded?" Kanzaki asked Izumi.

"I studied the books. On an auspicious day, a prophecy will decode itself. Even if the person who memorized the books has not read that particular prophecy, the prophecy will magically decode itself in that person's mind."

Index interrupted just then. "Give me paper and a pencil." Yoshikawa handed her a pad of paper and a pencil. Index started writing. When she finished, she showed it to Izumi.  
He scanned it, and winced. "Mind translating it to Japanese? My Latin is a bit rusty. And I don't think the others here read Latin."

"Why is it in Latin?" Touma wondered out loud.

"The original Sibylline Books, written by the oracle Sibyl, were produced in Ancient Rome, where the national language was Latin."

Index finished translating and read the prophecy out loud. 

_"A child two different worlds shall create,_  
 _The strongest of the strong, the number shall be eight._  
 _Sacrifice for another at one's demise,_  
 _Rise again, as Heaven's eyes."_

Everyone shifted nervously, even Izumi. "I don't like the third sentence," he muttered.

"None of it makes sense." Yoshikawa said.

"Prophecies are meant to be ambiguous. On the contrary, the first sentence is quite simple. _A child two different worlds shall create._ That's definitely Accelerator. The two different worlds are obviously science and magic. Next line?"

" _The strongest of the strong, the number shall be eight._ "

"Strongest of the strong? Maybe that can refer to the level 5 espers." Yoshikawa suggested.

"Aren't there only seven of them?" Kanzaki asked.

"Shizuka's a level 5, albeit unknown. With her, that brings the number to eight."

"Okay, so second line down. That was pretty easy."

"Third line: _Sacrifice for another at one's demise_."

"Doesn't 'demise' mean death?"

"Basically. So someone's sacrificing himself or herself for someone else and die. Sounds a little creepy."

"We can dwell on that later. Last line is _Rise again as Heaven's eyes_."

"Heaven's eyes?" Again, Touma looked confused.

"I don't know." Izumi said flatly. "And I'm not going to dwell on it."

"While you're here, why don't you tell us some information about Accelerator's parents?"

"I can tell you that in the morning. Is there any place to sleep?" He yawned.

"There are two couches. I think Aiho also has a few sleeping bags, if you all want to stay."

"Index, Kamijou, stay here."

"What about you and Kanzaki?"

"There's no more reason for us to stay. We'll check up occasionally though."

Stiyl and Kanzaki walked out the door, closing it behind them. Izumi chuckled. "They probably won't be back, unless they're feeling sentimental. They've done their job."

"Job?"

"I told them to inform Accelerator and Shizuka about magic and as much as they knew about their parents, and about magic."

"So they didn't come of their own accord?"

"Oh, they did. I gave them a choice to do it or not."

"Do you even know Shizuka's parents?"

"Tsukiko Chihiro and Mizuki Hikaru, I presume? If you want to know, we all knew each other."

"'We?'"

"You guys ask way too many questions.'We' as in my brother, my sister-in-law, me, and them."

"Fine, we'll let you sleep. But one last question: if Accelerator's father is your brother, why don't you call him by his name?"

"I'm withholding that information for Accelerator. He gets to hear it first. Even if his memories return, there wasn't too much information he knew about his parents. Am I allowed to check on him?"

"Sure. Just make sure you have a spell ready in case something reacts to your presence."

"Oh please, I know what I'm doing."

"Do you even know which room is Accelerator's?"

"I'll tell by the magic levels." Izumi walked into the hallway. His hand hovered over the handle to Yomikawa's room, but then he shook his head. Despite not knowing the layout of the place, he found Accelerator's room with no difficulty after that.

Quietly, he opened the door. Avoiding contact with any of the magic circles, he walked to the side of the esper's bed and looked down at his brother's child. Accelerator looked quite peaceful, looking as if he was just sleeping. Yet, Izumi knew what was going on the boy's head, considering he had put the seal there himself. He still remembered the anguished pain he felt after. He had erased every trace of the past and Accelerator's parents, and replaced it with a past of loneliness and hurt, purposely disguising his magic to make it look like a work of science. He had seen Accelerator's future at the Institute, full of pain and blood. He had even tried to change the future by begging Yoshikawa to not make Accelerator participate in any of the projects, but she couldn't do anything, and the future went on without any change.

 _Flashback-9 years ago-when Accelerator_ _was taken into the Special Abilities Institute_

A young white-haired boy with red eyes looked warily at the large building in front of him. The man in the lab coat in front of him motioned for him to go in.

"Hurry up and go in. I don't have all day."

Tentatively, the young boy walked into the Special Abilities Institute, gazing in awe at the high-tech equipment and the clean, blank white walls. Behind him, there was the sound of footsteps retreating. He turned to the man.

"Why am I here?"

"You possess an ability which is very rare and powerful. We wish to train you and your ability for good use in Academy City."

"What if I say no?" The young Accelerator asked, his attitude now defiant that he was alone with the scientist.

The scientist sighed. "I wish you'd come along peacefully. I really don't want any violence."

"That's a load of crap and you know it. I know you guys will do anything to get me since I also know magic."

"Then why did you come in?"

The boy sneered. "Did it look like I had a choice? For some reason, you guys didn't get affected by my ability and forcibly brought me here."

"I'll give you one last chance. Come peacefully or else."

"Or else what? No weapons work on me." Accelerator smiled confidently.

The scientist snapped his fingers. At once, a group of men surrounded him and started shooting bullets at the young esper. The boy smirked as the bullets were reflected back to the men and sent them flying, but more kept on aiming their guns at him.

"Enough." A tired, yet familiar voice said.

Accelerator whipped his head around to face the person walking towards him. "Uncle Izumi? What are you doing here?"

"Nephew, just go with them. As for you"-he turned to the scientist-"how much more idiotic can you guys get? You know guns don't work on him."

"We're not idiots! We were thinking his ability would tire him out eventually and then we would be able to capture him."

"His ability's instinctive and almost like a part of him. Now back off. I'll handle him. You voted to have his memories erased and replaced, right? I'll do that. "

The scientist nodded and called off his men. Izumi knelt in front of Accelerator, so that he was the same height as the boy. Accelerator stared at him defiantly. "Why did you let them kidnap me when you were still in the house?"

"I'm sorry. This had to happen."

"Don't tell me this has to do with what Mother and Father wanted with me." The boy's words only wavered slightly at the mention of his parents.

"Your parents never wanted this for you. But as the future says, this has to happen. I'm sorry, my boy. No matter what, remember that your parents will always love you. And remember Shizuka as well. You'll see her again one day. But for now, you have to stay with the scientists. Now, stay still."

The young esper looked confused. "Uncle Izumi, what are you...?"

Izumi put his hand on the boy's head and spoke a spell. The boy collapsed, unconscious. Izumi gathered the boy into his arms and laid him on a nearby table.

The scientist peeked out from another room. "How did you neutralize him?"

"He's my nephew. I know him and his ability well."

"What are you doing?"

"Helping you...for now. When I'm done with him, he'll go along with you guys and stay here."

"Why are you helping us? I thought you'd want to prevent this happening."

"It has to happen. However, this conversation never happened. You never saw me. You believe that you managed to neutralize the boy that you call Accelerator and that he will stay in the Special Abilities Institute." The man's eyes glazed over and he nodded robotically. He promptly turned and marched into another room.

Izumi turned back to his young, unconscious nephew. He placed his fingers on the boy's temples, chanting. White light flared out from the esper's head and floated towards the ceiling, where it condensed into a magic circle. Then, filaments of black light streamed from Izumi's hands and into the boy's head. After the black disappeared, the white magic circle descended after it.

Izumi finished the chant and took his hands away. If someone looked closely, they would have seen his eyes sparkling with unshed tears of grief. Grief at what he had condemned his own flesh and blood to. Grief that spoke of losing yet another family member.

Izumi swiped at his eyes and quickly slipped out of the Institute, leaving no trace of magic.

 _Back to the present_

Izumi forced himself to calm down, ignoring the lump rising in his throat. He took one last glance at Accelerator.

 _He's grown a lot. Nii-san would've been amazed at his growth._

Then Izumi glided over to Shizuka's bed, looking down at the sleeping female. He had also put the seal on her head when she was taken to the Institute, exactly one year before Accelerator was taken. Her parents' dying wish was to let Shizuka play out the role that she needed to play in the future. They had died shortly after making that wish. Izumi shuddered as he remembered how they died. It wasn't pretty. A group of magicians from the French Catholic Church had wanted revenge against the couple for abandoning the magic side completely. He had also heard that the group had some petty grudge against them as well. Whatever the story was, the magicians had created a vicious monster out of magic and it had attacked them when they were out on a walk alone. Caught off guard, they were wounded badly and could barely fight back, let alone send a signal for help. Izumi had been in the area and responded as soon as he felt the monster, but it was too late to rescue any of them after he had destroyed the monster. Luckily, Shizuka had no idea what happened to her parents, as she was at home. And then a day after that, she was taken to the Institute.

He also had no idea how and why Shizuka met and became friends with Accelerator. Two years after his parents' death, Accelerator had become withdrawn and hurt, with a fiery temper that always flared if someone tried talking to him, even at the young age of 6. He was the only one that could talk to Accelerator back then.

When they had met, none of the two knew that the other knew magic. Somehow, the two had become fast friends. When Izumi had found out her parents were Tsukiko Chihiro and Mizuki Hikaru, he was surprised and delighted that his old friends were in the city. However, he was saddened when they told him they had given up the magician life. They had wanted Shizuka to be safe from magicians, since her ability with the elements was too powerful for anybody to handle. They had managed to pass off her ability as an esper ability, so they were able to move in with success. He had asked them to take Accelerator in once he knew their situation. Back then, Izumi was still grief-stricken over his brother's death, and didn't have the emotional capability back then to properly take care of a young child who was also in pain from his parents' deaths. He knew that Accelerator was the first-hand witness of his parents' deaths. Any child was bound to have cracked emotional and mental health, but Accelerator seemed fine, until Izumi had seen his actions in the Level 6 Shift Project.

Izumi sighed again as he slipped out of the room, heading to the living room. In the darkness, he could still see the sleeping form of Touma stretched out on the ground, and Index sleeping on one couch. He went over to the other couch and laid down, staring at the blank ceiling. Most of this, he knew, was his fault. His fault for erasing Accelerator's memories. His fault for putting his brother's son through a living hell. Yet if his visions were true, everything was preordained to happen.

He recalled the scenes of his training time at Necessarius with his brother. Both of them had wanted to study divinity at a young age. However, his brother's visions consisted mainly of war and pain, and he had many nightmares throughout training. His own visions consisted of individual beings and their families, but mainly their lives.

It would be the truth to say that he and his brother were the masters behind the puppet show, even at the same level as Aleister Crowley. Yet they were also puppets, driven by the unshakable future and fate.

In another blink of an eye, Izumi closed his eyes and fell asleep, not aware that something else was also in Accelerator's head, speeding up his counter-seal.


	10. Accelerator's (Not Technically) Past

**Everything in this chapter is pretty much based on my own imagination. Enjoy to the best of your abilities, because sometimes, the ideas in my mind confuse even me. Read, review, follow and favourite please!**

 _August 20-2 days after Accelerator and Shizuka went into a coma_

Accelerator found himself floating in a white place, which looked strangely familiar.

"Am I in a dream dimension again?"

 _Yes._

The voice sounded familiar even if he only heard it once. Accelerator decided to take a guess. "Michael?"

 _Ah, so you remember me, young Accelerator._

"I'm not that young."

 _I doubt you should try and compare ages to something that is millennia old. To us, eighteen years is a mere blink of an eye._

"Okay, okay, I get it. Why am I here again? Last time I checked, I don't think I was dying."

 _The seal on your mind broke, which means you are supposed to get your memories back. Yet, your memories also come with something else._

"Which is?"

 _Your suppressed magical power. Your father was a magician after all._

"What kind of magic?"

 _The family magic in your family is combat magic. Most likely, you will have magically enhanced skills in battle and you will be able to cast offensive spells._

"That's a little hard to take in, considering I've never used magic."

 _Oh, you have. You just don't remember._

"Why are you having this conversation with me anyways? I thought I was supposed to get my memories back."

 _You will get them all back in due time. For now, I wish to show you some scenes that are not from your past._

"What are they?"

 _Scenes of your parents' lives, and of your uncle. He has arrived in your home days ago._

"Before you show me, what's this about my uncle? He's in the apartment?"

 _Yes. He arrived two days ago_. _He came to train you and Tsukiko Shizuka in magic once you wake up._

"Oh."

 _It would be best if you forgive him when you wake up._

"What did he do to me?"

 _He was the one who put the seal in your head. He erased your memories and Shizuka's, and replaced your memories with a painful past._

"Why would he do that?!"

 _The scientists in the Special Abilities Institute did not want your memories of magic to interfere with the Science side. They were planning to erase your memories yourselves. If you resisted it, they would have found a way to kill you. Your uncle had seen the future in his visions, and knew your memories had to be erased in order for you to survive in the Science world without being targeted by anyone._

"What if my memories weren't erased?"

 _You would have either been killed, or targeted all your life. You would have not had one moment of peace in your life, constantly looking over your shoulder to make sure no one is going to target you. Do not think ill of your uncle. You have gone through an almost literal hell in the Institute, but in reality, it was better than the alternative._

"Fine. How do you know all this?"

Michael's voice sounded slightly amused. _You have forgotten what I am, have you not? Angels can see all that happens on this tiny planet you call home. I have observed your family and particularly you for the past two decades. Now, let me show you some scenes that are essential for your knowledge, or maybe your amusement._

Accelerator suddenly found himself in front of a stone church. In front was a lush garden full of beautiful flowers. Beside him was an extremely bright white light, human-shaped. Accelerator looked at it in surprise, and then shielded his eyes quickly.

"What's that?"

 _You do not like this form? I thought it would benefit you to see me in a more visible form._

"Can you take on a more human shape? I'm not in my actual body, but I think I'll get blinded."

The light faded, until Accelerator saw a white-haired teen beside him. The boy opened his eyes to reveal blank white eyeballs. There was no pupil, no iris. He was wearing a white Roman toga and he was barefoot. On his back, feathered white wings sprouted.

 _Does this form suit you better, Accelerator?_

"Yeah."

 _Let us go in then. Follow me._

"One more question, where and when are we?"

 _We are currently in London, England. This is the Necessarius base, around four decades ago. Now come._

Following the boy, Accelerator walked into the stone church, passing through the door. They walked past a large chapel, and a hallway that was labeled "Dormitory".

Michael stopped at a large room. _This is where the first scene begins. I will give you information on what is going on as the scene unfolds._

Accelerator walked into the room, seeing two young boys alone at a table. They were busy studying a large book that was written in Latin. Suddenly, the younger of the two pushed back his chair and stretched.

"Onii-san, I'm bored. Studying Latin all day is no fun."

"If you want to be a diviner, you have to know Latin, Izumi." The older boy replied absently, turning a page.

"You're such a stick in the mud! I don't care what you say, I'm taking a break."

Accelerator had almost forgotten Michael was there until he heard the voice again.

 _The younger boy is your uncle Izumi. The older is your father. Currently, we are in the time when your father is 10 years old, and Izumi 6._

"This just feels weird, watching the kid version of adults."

 _You had the same reaction when you saw the picture of yourself eleven years ago in that locket. I suggest you continue watching._

Accelerator focused back on the scene. The older boy finally got out of his seat and went over to his younger brother.

"Izumi, stop being so stubborn. Take a break, but don't go out of my sight. I don't want you dyeing my hair pink with that spell of yours again."

 _"_ Oh come on, that was fun. You didn't even notice until you looked into a mirror."

For the first time, Accelerator finally noted the appearances of the two boys. The younger boy, Izumi, had messy black hair in a style similar to his and had indigo-black eyes. He was short and scrawny, but his eyes were sparkling with mischief. The older boy was tall and lanky, with neat black hair in contrast and red eyes. With a start, Accelerator realized that his eye colour was inherited and not from his ability.

The older boy spoke again. "What about we have a duel in the training area, Izumi? Then we'll go back to studying."

"No fair, you always beat me."

"That's because I'm older. You'll be as good as me when you're older, alright?"

The younger boy took his older brother's outstretched hand. "Fine."

Before they could move though, two other kids bounded into the room, a boy and a girl. They looked familiar to Accelerator.

"They look like people I'm supposed to know."

 _They are Tsukiko Shizuka's parents. All four of them were good friends since childhood, despite being in different churches. Tsukiko Chihiro is 11 and Mizuki Hikaru is 9._

"My family history is getting stranger and stranger," Accelerator muttered.

 _It's not as strange as some. Their friendship was one of the factors that led you and Shizuka to become friends._

The boys' eyes lit up when the boy and girl entered the room.

"Chihiro, Hikaru! You guys came!" Izumi called, a look of delight on his face.

The boy, Chihiro, grinned, jade green eyes shining with excitement. "Father and Mother had some business they had to take care of with Hikaru's parents. After plenty of begging, they finally let us come here for the weekend."

Hikaru looked around the room, a look of pure delight on her face from all the books. "You guys are so lucky to have so many books to study."

"It's nice when it's silent. Sadly, Izumi keeps on jumping all over the place and then I can't concentrate."

"I don't jump around the place, Onii-san!"

"It was a figure of speech."

"Stop acting so mature, Tsukasa."

The boy shrugged. "Chihiro, you can't change my nature."

"So my father's name is Tsukasa." Accelerator commented.

 _Yes. If you wish to know, your father was always the mature one, even at a young age._

The scene dissolved into white nothingness. Accelerator turned to Michael.

"What was that for?"

 _This was only to show you a little bit of their personalities as children, and daily life in Necessarius for them. The next memory is 15 years after._

The exact same room materialized again, but this time, Accelerator saw only one person: a 21-year-old Izumi. He had a somewhat hardened air around him, with a new-looking jagged scar across the right side of his face, making him look very sinister. Despite that, he still had a cheerful look about him. He was flipping through a book, a bowl of water at his side on the table. He stopped at a page, and started chanting in Latin. As Accelerator watched on, the water in the bowl rippled, and then settled, showing a scene of a living room.

Izumi sat down and stared into the bowl. After a second, a face appeared in the bowl: a familiar red-eyed man, also known as Izumi's older brother, 25-year-old Tsukasa. Izumi sighed with relief.

"Nii-san! You replied!"

In the bowl, Tsukasa smiled tiredly, bleary-eyed from lack of sleep. "Hey, little brother. How's it going in England?"

"Fine, fine. What happened to you? You look exhausted!"

"Comes with moving to a new home. I've barely slept in the past couple days."

"You need some rest, Nii-san."

"I know; I'm going to sleep after we're done talking."

"Are you actually in the centre of the Science city now and not the outlying areas?"

"Yep. Everything's really high-tech over here."

"How different is it from magic?"

"Some things are so advanced they seem like magic. I doubt I'll fit in fine here, but Chihiro and Hikaru offered to take us to their place in the Amakusa Church if we have any trouble."

"Oh, right. They got married a month ago, right?"

"I still can't believe you didn't go to the ceremony."

"I came at the end."

"All muddied up and bloody since you came straight from dispatching a few wyverns."

"At least I showed up."

"True. Hey, what happened to your face?" Tsukasa's eyes had cleared and he stared at the scar on Izumi's face.

Izumi quickly covered the scar with his hand. "Not important."

Tsukasa's eyes narrowed to slits. "Don't lie to me, little brother. I know a few truth spells that can travel through this connection."

Izumi scowled. "And that's why you're like the second-ranked magician in the entire world. Alright, I was tracking down a lindworm that had escaped from its seal in Norway. Whoever sealed it were idiots, since it escaped really easily. It managed to get a lucky strike to my face before I killed it."

"Third-ranked, you mean. Are you alright? The claws of lindworms are way too poisonous to heal with a simple spell."

"I used the healing spell you taught me. It got rid of the poison, but the scar is permanent."

"You are so careless sometimes. If I weren't so tired, I'd be hitting you over the head right now for your stupidity."

"Aw, but I know you love me, Nii-san. Besides, I look way more terrifying now."

"Enough to give little kids nightmares, is that it?"

"Oh, relax. I can hide it with a glamour if the need arises. For now, I can just wear my cloak. Anyways, where's Luna? I thought she would come to say hello to her favourite future brother-in-law."

"More like only future _bother-_ in-law. She's already sleeping."

Accelerator turned to Michael. "Who's Luna?"

 _Your mother._

"What?!"

 _Don't sound so surprised. Oh, and there's one other thing you won't know until I tell you: your mother was the strongest level 5 esper two decades ago, with the ability Matter Manipulation._

"What's matter manipulation?"

 _The ability to manipulate the matter in one area. She could change its properties and form. Very dangerous. Academy City is lucky that she was a very kind-hearted person and wouldn't use her ability unless she had to._

"That's a creepy ability. Is there some kind of first-ranked esper streak in the family?"

 _Perhaps. You may learn more if you keep on watching._

Accelerator saw Izumi sticking his tongue out childishly at the bowl of water. "I'm not a bother, Nii-san. Anyways, when's the wedding again? In three weeks?"

Tsukasa sighed and raked his hand through his already-messy hair, making it stand up straight in black spikes. "I thought I told you. In one week. I've been working my ass off organizing the house. Luna's been busy with wedding preparations. I barely saw her yesterday since she was out with her friends picking out a dress."

Izumi whistled. "You're having a bad time of it, Nii-san. Should I come over early to help?"

"That'd be great, Izumi. See if you can book a flight now. I need advice and a lot of help."

"You do know I'm not married, right?"

"Shut up. I'm desperate. And I'm only asking for advice as a brother and not a soon-to-be married man."

"Alright, I'll put you out of your misery. I'll be on the next flight to Tokyo, okay?"

"Thank you, little brother. See you."

"Bye." Izumi waved his hand over the water, and the image of his brother vanished. He leaned back on his chair, a thoughtful look on his face. "I wonder if I should have told him that I saw the future and about his future son."

The scene dissolved into white. Michael turned to Accelerator. _Even back then, your uncle had seen the future about you. He did not know of your fate yet, but he was aware that you would exist._

"Seeing the future seems disturbing now. Why can't they change any part of it?"

 _Unfortunately, some situations, like the war and your life, are fixed. The way they go is not changeable. Other situations can be changed, but not this one._

"What was my father doing in Academy City anyways?"

 _His visions of the war had led him there, in order to father a child of science and magic. I have one more scene to show you, and then I will leave you for now to absorb all your memories._

The white void shuddered and rippled, and resolved itself into a scene of a park beside a nearby hospital. Accelerator saw a black-cloaked figure leaning casually against a tree, barely distinguishable from the tree's shadow.

"Where are we now?"

 _August 18th, 2000. The day you were born. That person is Izumi._

"What's he doing?"

 _You'll see soon enough._

As Accelerator watched on, a figure approached Izumi. With a start of surprise, he realized it was Yoshikawa. She looked really young-maybe around 20 years old. She walked straight towards Izumi, a neutral expression on her face. Izumi turned his head toward her, his head still covered with a black hood. He detached himself from the tree and met her halfway there.

"So you came, Yoshikawa Kikyou."

"Hello, Izumi. What did you call me for?"

Izumi drew back his hood, revealing his scarred face. He still had a casual air around him though. "You know why I called you?"

"Something about I'm the only one who can do this since I was a science person born and bred."

"I have a favour to ask. A very large one."

"What is it?"

"You know the child of science and magic was born today."

"Your brother's child, right?"

"Yes. We're both diviners, but he has seen nothing of his son's future. Just the war. However, I have seen parts of his future."

"And where do I come in?"

"When he grows up, my nephew is going to go through one hell of a life. I'm asking you to watch over him from a distance and act as his guardian if Tsukasa and I ever become unavailable."

"You know I won't be able to protect him from everything."

"I know. There are some things in the future that none of us can prevent. I just want you to keep an eye on him if possible."

"Fine with me."

"Also, don't use cellphones to contact me. Use these." Izumi removed a box from somewhere within the folds of his cloak and handed it to her. It was silver, with magic circles carved into the sides and the lid. "Inside are magical means to contact me. Take one piece of paper and say my name three times, and I will reply if I can. If by chance I need to contact you, I will call you with your cell. Then, fold a piece of paper and unfold it, and you will be able to talk to me. Also, here is a book on the churches and magical history. It will update itself regularly, so you will always know what's going on in the magic world." Izumi handed her a leather-bound book which Accelerator identified as the book Yoshikawa had been reading earlier.

"Why aren't you telling your brother any of this?"

"He's stressed enough as is about trying to protect his newborn son. I don't want to burden him with information that his son will have a painful future."

"Is that what you would call kindness?"

"Perhaps I'm naïve, just like you. If my visions come true, he won't see any of his son's future."

"I see. Is that all?"

"Yes. Goodbye for now."

Yoshikawa took the box and left. The scene dissolved into white again. Accelerator turned to Michael.

"What kind of relationship do these two have?!"

 _A very interesting one. Izumi saved her life one time when he visited Academy City. She was the one who gave him all the information on Academy City._

"I'm telling you, my past is getting stranger and stranger."

 _Would you prefer your fake past or this one then?_ _These scenes aren't even from your past._

"At least I know I had a family. But the way everybody seems to know each other is just strange."

 _Maybe it will turn out like this for you and the others in the next few decades._

"Oi, stop messing with me."

 _Is this what you humans would call going too far with a joke?_ The human form of Michael had his lips twisted in an odd smile.

"In simple terms, yes."

 _I see. Do you have any questions you want to ask me?_

"Why wasn't my real name mentioned in any of the scenes?"

 _You said so yourself that your real name was probably an awful one, so I chose scenes that did not mention your actual name. Do you want to know your real name? I can tell you right now._

"I'm telling you, it was probably crappy. I've already gotten used to Accelerator as a name now."

 _Very well. I will still let you know though._

Michael blinked, and just like that, Accelerator suddenly knew his real name. He scowled. "I knew it was crappy."

 _It is not as bad of a name as some. However, it did fit your nature somewhat back then. Is there anything else you wish to know?_

"You never showed me any scenes of my mother."

 _Have you studied the history of espers?_ _Two to three_ _decades ago, the strongest esper was your mother, the first-ranked level 5. I have already told you that, but you have not come up with a description of her?_

"I never really studied the esper history."

 _As always, humans are ignorant of their history._

"I'm not that ignorant. Forget my mother for a second. I know a lot more now. I doubt I want to see more. I do have a few questions."

 _Yes?_

"Why are you acting this nice to me? I thought angels were all high and mighty and all that."

 _You're a very interesting person, Accelerator. Besides, your past is not like Tsukiko Shizuka's. Some scenes you had to see for your benefit. And as for the second part, angels are the ones who help mankind out. I wish to help you in your life._

"Why do you only seem to use your power when I'm near death?"

 _When you are at your most desperate or at the point of death, it is the easiest time where I can possess your body without your consent. You have to agree to let me use your body as a host. Otherwise, I cannot forcibly possess your body._

"Then why didn't you talk to me earlier?"

 _You were not aware of magic back then. I did not wish to burden you with more knowledge that wouldn't have made any sense._

"What happened to my parents?"

 _That's in your own memories, which you'll find out soon enough. But if you want to know, the most succinct answer I will give is that they died_ , _even with their powers_.

"I see. What about my ability?"

 _In reality, you were born with it, yet it did not manifest until you were 4 years old. To cover up the supposed phenomenon, the scientists released a story saying that you went through the esper curriculum early._

"Can I see a scene of my mother using her ability?"

The white space dissolved into a room with white walls. Accelerator saw a young version of his mother standing in the middle. She had lilac-coloured hair, eyes the colour of molten gold, and a slender figure, similar to Mizuki Hikaru. He then saw the young woman raise her hand, and then the walls started crumbling, dissolving into particles of dust. Then, the dust coiled itself into a compact shape, and then exploded in midair.

"That looks more like particle manipulation than matter manipulation," Accelerator commented.

 _This was only a small part of her ability. If she wanted to, she could change the properties of the walls into anything she wished._ _Yet she never did anything of the sort since she never wanted to hurt anybody intentionally or unintentionally._

"I can see she's really kind-hearted. Although, why did you show me all these scenes?"

 _As I said, they are to show you the lives of your parents. Since they died when you were 4, you have very little memories of them. I thought this was a good idea to give you an idea of what they were like._

"Thanks."

 _It is nothing. However, I must tell you one thing. When your parents died, Izumi was shattered. He changed from his carefree self to a cold and expressionless person, emotions frozen from grief. When you wake up, you must remember that he is not the same person you saw in the memories._

"Okay, I get it."

 _Now, do you want me to leave you alone for your sealed memories to resurface?_

"I still have a few more things to ask."

 _You have a lot of questions._ Michael's voice sounded amused.

"You can't blame me, I knew barely anything. Since I know you're in my mind and all that, can I use your powers now?"

 _If you wish. I will tell you what I can do as the war approaches. Yet, I cannot use my full power, as your body will burn up from a the raw power. No matter how strong you may be, no human can bear the full power of an angel, let alone an archangel._

"Is there a way?"

 _It requires a ritual with many incantations and spells. The entire process would take at least a year, depending on the person's strength and the angel. There is a way to bypass it and only perform one spell which would only take minutes, but you wouldn't like it._

"Why not?"

 _I would rather that you would not know now. I will tell you later. It does require sacrifice of something very important._

"Fine. Is it possible for you to heal my brain or something so my ability comes back?"

 _It is already happening. Due to your suppressed magical power, the release of it is more than enough to restore your body back to its original condition. Now, I'll speed up the process of receiving back your memories and magic. Wake up soon, Accelerator._

Accelerator felt something like a gust of wind blowing through the white place. Even if he wasn't in his physical body, it still felt cold. Suddenly, the whiteness disintegrated into darkness. Flashes of colour rose from the bottom of the darkness, rushing up to surround Accelerator. Suddenly, he felt a surge of energy, even in a mental body, and the colour spun around him and into him. Abruptly, the colour resolved itself into multiple scenes, which Accelerator identified as the memories that were sealed away. One by one, they flew into him, flying by so quickly he couldn't identify any of them. He felt another rush of energy, but this time, it was more like knowledge and not power. Finally, the rush of memories slowed, and Accelerator felt himself drifting into sleep again, reliving all the memories that he had forgotten.

 **I hoped you liked this chapter! Just saying, I will include the sixth-ranked level 5 esper in this story. There's practically no information on him/her, so any ideas for name, personality, appearance or ability? On second thoughts, please think up a guy OC so the number of guys and girls in level 5 are balanced (don't forget Shizuka's a level 5 as well).**


	11. Waking Up

**Hey guys! Here's chapter 11! Sorry I didn't update in a while; I had a slight bit of writer's block. Please review/follow/favourite!**

Shizuka wasn't experiencing anything that Accelerator was. On the contrary, she was just sleeping. Her memories were gradually being added back to her mind, and her magic was also returning. However, the process wasn't speeding up like Accelerator's since nothing was there to speed it up. Yet, she was often dreaming about her parents. They were telling her to wake up in kind tones.

Meanwhile, Accelerator woke up on August 21, three days after he went into a coma. He opened his eyes to a darkened room, illuminated only by the faint glowing of the magic circles. Besides that, the rest of the room was shrouded in darkness. He sat up, only to grimace in pain as his stiff neck cracked.

"So you're awake." Accelerator glanced around quickly, finally locating the owner of the voice leaning against the wall, pretty much indistinguishable from the shadows.

"So you're my uncle?"

"So your memories are back. Don't call me that. You're old enough to just call me Izumi."

 _Michael's right. His personality has changed a lot._

"Well, how do you feel, Accelerator?"

"After getting out of a coma? Not as bad as I thought."

"Has your ability returned?"

"How am I supposed to know?"

"Don't use your choker and control the direction of the wind." The black-cloaked figure moved over to the window, drew back the dark curtains, and opened the window, letting a breeze in. Resisting the habit to turn on his choker, Accelerator directed the wind to fly around the room and back out the window, ruffling the edges of the curtains.

"My ability's back." Accelerator said in surprise.

"There was an 85% chance that it wouldn't have come back. Well, looks like you'll be much more powerful now."

Choosing to ignore the fact for now, Accelerator asked something else. "What time is it?"

"2:48 am, August 21."

"You don't sleep?"

"I still have a bit of jet lag, considering I live in England. Anyways, one of us had to keep an eye on you guys. Index is sleeping, so I took the night shift. You did wake up earlier than I expected."

"When's Shizuka waking up?"

"When she wakes up. Although, I estimate around 2-3 more days." Izumi finally moved to the side of Accelerator's bed, where Accelerator could clearly see Izumi's features. There was a clear change from the cheerful, outgoing man Michael had shown him. The current-time Izumi had icy indigo-black eyes which looked like chips of black ice. He had an extremely cold air about him. Any trace of warmness was nonexistent. He stepped back from the bed and examined Accelerator with a critical eye.

"You haven't changed a bit except for your height."

"That's 'cause you haven't seen any changes yet." Accelerator suddenly hunched over as a wave of intense pain slammed into his gut. He inhaled sharply in surprise and shock, and shook uncontrollably as red and black energy flowed out of him. The magic circles changed colour to a menacing black and a beam of black hit the esper in the chest, knocking him onto his back.

Izumi swore and quickly moved back to Accelerator's bed, shouting a spell. A blue barrier formed over Accelerator's body. As the beam made contact with the barrier, the beam disintegrated. Izumi put his hand on Accelerator's head a spoke another spell. The shaking slowly stopped and the light emanating from the teen's body faded, leaving a wide-eyed Accelerator who was staring up at the ceiling.

"What the hell was that?"

"Apparently your magic is reacting with your science ability now that your magic power has increased. I just put a quick binding spell for now."

"What was that black beam?"

"Defensive measures to make sure your magic doesn't go out of control. Although if I didn't step in, it would have killed you in minutes."

"Thanks, but I thought my body could handle science and magic."

"When you were younger, your magic power levels weren't that high. Now that your full magic power has been unleashed, it's clashing with your ability."

"So what do I do?"

"I'm going to train you to control your magic and to use it. When you're done, you'll be able to use both your ability and magic at the same time."

"I see." Abruptly, a thought occurred to him. "Where's the brat?"

"Do you mean the clone Last Order?"

"Yeah."

"Kikyou sent her to live with the doctor Heaven Canceller until you guys wake up."

"I see. What should I do now?"

"What do you mean?"

"I've been asleep for 3 days, and I wake up in the middle of the night. I can't sleep anymore."

Izumi stayed silent, the cold look never wavering. After a while, he spoke. "I have two choices for you. You can start magic training now, which I wouldn't recommend but you can do it, or we take a walk around Academy City. I haven't been here in nine years."

"Magic training," Accelerator immediately responded, wanting to try something that wasn't scientific for once.

"If you wish. Follow me." Izumi didn't sound surprised, although Accelerator could have sworn he had a slight undertone of disappointment in his voice. Getting off the bed, he was about to reach for his crutch, but he figured that since his body was restored, he didn't need it. Quickly hurrying after Izumi, he followed the black-cloaked figure out of the apartment and out onto the roof. He stopped just a few metres away from Izumi, who was gazing out at the city line.

"It's changed so much in less than a decade." Izumi's voice sounded wistful, not cold.

"I guess." Accelerator sounded flat and noncommittal.

"You should go somewhere outside of Academy City for a while. It'd be a great adventure. Trust me. I've travelled a lot."

"Where have you travelled?"

"Practically all around the world to track down and hunt escaped monsters or rogue magicians. Such is the life of a member of Necessarius. Well, no time to talk. You want to learn magic, I'll teach you." Izumi's voice had returned back to its usual brisk and cold tone. Muttering a few words under his breath, a large translucent blue dome formed over them.

Accelerator touched the side of the dome, which felt like cool glass. "What is this?"

"A barrier. Blocks any traces of magic from being detected in the city. By any chance if Aleister Crowley would want to track the traces of magic in his own city, even he won't be able to know that we used magic in this place."

"Just how powerful are you?"

"Seventh-ranked magician in the world. The first two aren't even human. Third-ranked was originally your father, but now the title is held by the leader of the Irish Protestant Church, and she's neutral. The fourth and sixth-ranked are in seclusion. The fifth-ranked is a member of the Roman Catholic Church. He's the only one we might actually need to look out for in the war."

"What's the difference between the Protestant Church and Necessarius?"

"We're Anglican. They're Protestant. There's a difference, but it's complicated and I don't want to explain."

"I see."

"Considering your magic clashes with your esper ability, I'm not too sure if I should remove the bind on your magic now. For now, I'll hone your reflection ability so you can reflect magic, and we'll work on hand-to-hand combat and your reflexes. I'll tell you this: I am not a lenient teacher." Izumi had a smirk on his face that promised pain and torture. Accelerator repressed a shudder. It would have taken himself years to perfect that smirk.

 _4 hours later_

Accelerator collapsed on the roof, gasping for breath. Izumi didn't even look a little bit exhausted. He looked exactly like he did 4 hours ago, before training had started. In these 4 hours, Izumi had pushed the limits of Accelerator's ability with magic spells that had made the lightning mage's spells look like child's play. Due to his ability returning, Accelerator had just enough power to barely block off the oncoming spells. After his ability had been exhausted, Accelerator was tested to his physical limits with training in hand-to-hand combat, speed and reflexes.

Izumi strode over and hovered over Accelerator's exhausted form. "You held out longer than I thought. Nice endurance. Here's your reward." Moving his fingers in a pattern, Izumi spoke a word that didn't even sound like any earthly language. Immediately, the pain in Accelerator's body and his weariness faded. Accelerator shifted into a sitting position, and glared at Izumi. "You seem to get plenty of amusement from this," he growled.

Izumi shrugged. "By the time I'm done with your training, you'll probably be able to stand toe-to-toe to Kanzaki, and she's a saint. I do have high expectations for you."

"You haven't changed a bit in these four hours although you seem to have used plenty of magic."

"I barely used 30% of my power. I could probably go on for another couple hours or so. Still, very impressive. Some of the spells I used could have been fatal if they hit you directly."

"Are you trying to kill me?!"

"Your ability worked, didn't it? After this much training, you should at least be able to deflect a powerful spell with no problem. Muttering something in a language that sounded vaguely like Latin, a bright beam of white light shot towards Accelerator. Remembering the beam as a spell that had broken through his deflection and nearly killed him, Accelerator summoned most of his power and strengthened his deflecting power. The beam hit the shield and bounced off to hit the barrier. It disappeared upon contact.

Izumi smiled, the first genuine one Accelerator had seen on his uncle's face. "You've improved extremely quickly. Good job. At this rate, you'll be beating up regular magicians in no time." He stretched. "Let's go back down before Aiho wakes up and finds that we're both gone."

"Since when were you on a first-name basis for Yoshikawa and Yomikawa?"

"Since now. It annoys the heck out of Aiho, but it's fun. Actually, let's wait a while." Izumi touched the side of the dome and it disappeared. He sat down beside Accelerator, watching the sun slowly rise.

Accelerator had a sudden thought. "Can that level 0 beat your magic?"

Izumi's expression turned sour. "Imagine Breaker. Not my favourite guy. He's annoying. But yes, he can get through my magic defenses. Although he won't get into a fight with me for a long time now."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I've heard about his power from the people who have been defeated by him. Out of curiosity, I tested him and he barely managed to get through. He got slightly cocky after that, so I taught him a lesson."

"What did you do?"

"I put him through one of my more powerful spells. It'll take a few days for him to recover. His fault for agreeing to fight me in the first place. Oh, and there's something else I forgot to tell you."

"Yeah?"

"There's a prophecy about you."

"Prophecy?" Accelerator stared at Izumi like he was crazy.

"Don't look at me like that. I'm not crazy. I was actually surprised there was only one prophecy about you anyways, since you're the special kid."

"I don't want to be called a special kid. What's the prophecy?"

"A child two different worlds shall create, the strongest of the strong, the number shall be eight. Sacrifice for another at one's demise, rise again as Heaven's eyes. We've already figured out half of it."

"What did you guys find?"

"First line obviously refers to you; second line refers to the strongest of the espers, the eight level 5s. As for the third and fourth line, we're still stuck."

"They could refer to me," Accelerator said. "Although the sacrificing and rising part, I'm not so sure."

"I know one thing for sure. Someone's going to die in the war. My visions have told me that much."

They sat in silence for a while, staring out at the slowly awakening city. Finally, Izumi stood up. "Don't tell the others I still have a soft side or else you'll find yourself without a tongue. I like my current reputation as a cold-blooded murderer to my targets." His voice was ice again.

"I get it."

"Good. Come on, let's go back."

As Izumi strode off, Accelerator followed slowly after, smirking to himself. His uncle was certainly a very cold person, but he still had some of his humanity.

 _Back in the apartment-7:30 AM_

Not to Accelerator's surprise, Yomikawa was up, drinking a cup of hot coffee in the living room while watching the news. She turned around at the sound of the door and nearly dropped her coffee cup when she saw Accelerator.

"Accelerator? You woke up?"

"Yeah. In the middle of the night."

"Where have you been?"

"Training with me." Izumi stepped into the room after Accelerator. "His powers returned as well."

Yomikawa's eyes widened. "Your calculating capability's back?"

"Yeah. I don't need the choker anymore."

"Glad you're perfectly fine now. Well, does that mean you're back as the first-ranked level 5 esper?"

"Yeah, I guess." Accelerator let out a yawn and sat on the other couch.

Meanwhile, Izumi glanced at the TV. "Any important news of the sort?"

"Information leaked from the city security has everyone panicking. There's rumours that a war is going to happen. More work for Anti-Skill." She looked annoyed.

"Then turn the damn volume up!" Izumi snatched the remote and turned the volume up.

 _"When asked about the rumours currently circulating around the city, Academy City officials have refused to say a thing. They say that everything is fine, and that the rumours are fake. However, they have kept silent about the reason why the rumours were on their security database."_

Izumi hit the mute button. His face was paler than ever. "Don't tell me the Roman Catholic Church is working faster than we thought."

"Whoa there, slow down. What's this about the Roman Catholic Church?" Yomikawa glared at Izumi, her face demanding answers.

"There will be a war. Between science and magic. The sources said it would have taken a few weeks. Don't tell me it was a dupe?!" Izumi swore. "Damn the Romans. They could never wait."  
"Izumi, calm down." This came from Yoshikawa, who had just entered the living room. "Welcome back to the realm of the awake, Accelerator."

Accelerator gave her a brief nod. Yoshikawa turned back to Izumi. "Is there any way you can contact Necessarius to ask for more information? You can use the things you gave me."

"Pass it over. I have to talk with her."

"Her?" Accelerator broke in, looking confused.

"Archbishop Laura Stuart. Extremely frivolous, but she gave me the info." Izumi took a small slip of paper from Yoshikawa and folded it, bringing it to his lips and whispering a few words. He then unfolded it.

"My, my, you're quite the impatient one, aren't you, Izumi?" A female voice came from the paper, speaking Japanese with just a hint of a British accent.

"You gave me the wrong information, Archbishop." Accelerator saw that Izumi was struggling to keep his composure.

"Actually, I'm watching the same news on Academy City right now. The information they have is from an old threat when the Roman Catholic Church sent Vento of the Front to attack the city."

"Then when will the Romans send the declaration of war?"

"No exact time has been declared. I told you I estimated a week or so."

"And what if they progress quicker than expected?"

"Go and talk with Aleister Crowley."

"About what?!"

"Make sure he is aware that Accelerator can also use magic."

Accelerator's head snapped up at the mention of his name.

"That makes no sense whatsoever!"

"How about you tell him you'll support the Science side?"

"So you're finally telling me which side I should fight for?" Izumi's voice rose.

"My, my, don't let your temper control you. Well, I'll leave you to your own devices." The paper disintegrated and disappeared.

Izumi sat on the couch, his cold composure gone. In its place was a dark look of rage. He started muttering a series of words that weren't in Japanese.

"Izumi, what's going on?" Yoshikawa looked slightly concerned.

"Damned Romans and that Archbishop. She is such a-" Izumi muttered the last word in another language, but Accelerator easily guessed it as an insult. "We have a week until the Romans send their war declaration. Then, they will send their strongest magicians to attack the city. Sorry Aiho, but science is useless against magicians that are close to my caliber. The best we can do is get some magicians from Necessarius and get the strongest espers to fight."

"Don't forget Kamijou." Yomikawa commented.

Izumi's face turned even darker. "The most annoying guy in the world. Sadly, he'd be useful against magicians."

"So what did the Archbishop mean by telling Aleister Crowley about my magic? Didn't you say he's just going to kill me?"

"In a situation like this? You're the trump card in the war. Whoever has you on their side would win. The Romans don't want you on their side, so they'll target you."

"You know I got attacked by that lightning guy?"

"He was one of the Roman mercenaries. Very powerful. Although, that does confirm my suspicion that you have an angel inside you, which means the Science side will win pretty easily."

"He saved me twice, just saying." He quickly filled in what happened those two times when Michael had taken over his body. Suddenly, a familiar voice spoke in his head.

 _Accelerator, let me take over your body for a while._

Starting at Michael's voice, Accelerator replied mentally. _What are you going to do?_

 _I am going to inform your uncle about the war and the details that I know. This will be very useful information._

 _Okay then._

"Accelerator? What's wrong?" Yomikawa waved a hand in front of his face, and then she flinched back as his eyes closed, then snapped open to reveal blank white eyeballs.

 _It has been a long time since I have been allowed to take over a human's body with consent._ The voice was deep and regal, sounding nothing like Accelerator's voice.

"Who are you?" Izumi asked, his hand outstretched, a ball of energy forming on it.

 _I am not your enemy, diviner. Your suspicions were correct. Accelerator has given me temporary permission to let me speak through his body. I am the archangel Michael._

Izumi looked shocked, then dipped his head in a small bow. The ball of energy disappeared. "Thank you for saving my nephew's life twice, archangel."

 _It is nothing. However, I asked him to let me speak through his body to give you some information on the war. I am sorry, diviner, but the Science side will not win so easily._

"What's going to happen?"

 _As an archangel of heaven, I know more than my fellow angels. There must always be a balance between good and evil. As one of the archangels of heaven, I am the "good". Do you know what the opposite of me is?_

Izumi's face was ghostly white. "A fallen archangel."

 _Correct, diviner. We have information that the fallen archangel Lucifer has taken the side of the Catholics. While none of us wish to fight against the churches, they are no longer in control of themselves. Lucifer is controlling the fifth-ranked magician in the Roman Catholic Church. He has manipulated the entire church to his will. He will participate in the war._

Yoshikawa and Yomikawa gasped in horror. Izumi seemed to be in shock. Composing himself, he spoke again. "Then what will happen?"

 _This is not merely another battle between magic and science._ _Lucifer is trying to hasten the ending of the world, and the war the Romans are declaring is a perfect opportunity. As fate suggests, I will have to use Accelerator's body as my host and fight Lucifer in the body of the fifth-ranked magician. Even I do not know the outcome._

Izumi swallowed. "What can I do?"

 _Please train Accelerator to his limits and break past them. And Shizuka, as well. I cannot do much in my limited powers. This will greatly benefit you in the war._

Accelerator's eyes closed, but reopened a second later, revealing his red irises. "Okay, what happened? What's with the shocked looks?"

"You don't remember a thing?" Yomikawa asked.

"Last thing I remember was letting Michael take over my body for a while and then I wake up to find all three of you guys shell-shocked. What did Michael tell you guys?"

As Izumi was still too shaken to speak, Yoshikawa and Yomikawa quickly filled him in. Accelerator sighed and rolled his eyes towards the ceiling. "Can't I get one moment of peace in my life? This is just nice, finding out I play a big part in a supernatural battle."

"Well, looks like Tsukasa was right after all. His visions were never wrong." Izumi stood up, his expression ice again.

"Aren't visions of the future never wrong?"

"Not all the time. There was a vision I saw of you, a future that never came to pass. A future where you killed all the clones of the Railgun and achieved level 6."

"What happened to me?"

"Nothing good. You had lost all your humanity. You made your own group that is part of Academy City's darkness, and you carried out missions that destroyed many innocents and brought the city to its knees. When you reached 18 and the seal broke, it killed you."

Accelerator sat silently after that, saying nothing. Izumi sighed. "It was just a possibility. It can never pass now. The future has changed. For the better or for the worse, I don't know. Still, Archbishop Laura is right about one thing."

"What is it?" Yoshikawa asked.

"I should talk with Aleister Crowley."

"He does not speak unless he feels like it. And usually, he has a group of espers to get the people he wants to talk to. At least that's what I heard," Yoshikawa said.

"Forget about that. Isn't there anyone that can reach someone who can take me to Crowley?"

"Yes, there is." Stiyl entered the room. "Sorry for barging in, but the door was unlocked. You'll get your wish earlier than expected, Izumi-san. Aleister Crowley wants to talk to both you and Accelerator. I can't bring you there myself right now, but Musujime Awaki will." He left right after saying the words.

As if on cue, the mahogany-haired esper appeared in the room. Accelerator looked up again, sending the girl a death glare. She replied with a cool look. Turning her head from side to side, she spotted Izumi. "I believe you are the magician Aleister Crowley wants to meet?"

"Who else would it be?" Izumi replied warily.

"I have orders to take both you and Accelerator to where he is. We go now."

"No way in hell am I going with you." Accelerator muttered.

"You don't have a choice this time."

"Fine."

Accelerator, Izumi and Awaki disappeared, leaving Yoshikawa and Yomikawa in the living room. "That escalated pretty quickly," Yomikawa commented.  
"The sooner it's over, the better." Yoshikawa replied, sitting on the couch beside Yomikawa. "If Izumi's right, Anti-Skill won't be able to do a thing against magicians. We've gone beyond science."

"I just hope they don't get into too much trouble and take care of themselves."

"Your teacher instincts are kicking in again." Yoshikawa grinned at her old friend. "Hey, aren't you late for work?"

"Crap! Gotta go!" Yomikawa rushed out the door, coffee still on the table.

Yoshikawa shook her head ruefully. "I just hope nothing that bad happens in the near future," she said.


	12. Fights, Reunions and Surprises

**8700 words…..ugh. I was planning to write more so Shizuka waking up would start off the next chapter, but I gave up. Just saying, I added that magic fight in the end to show some of Accelerator's new powers. Thanks for waiting! Please read/follow/favourite/review!**

 _Inside the Windowless Building_

On the very top of the Windowless Building, Aleister Crowley, a male with long white hair and wearing a green hospital gown, floated upside down in a large container filled with a strange fluid. When Musujime Awaki arrived with Izumi and Accelerator, he stared straight at the group, no expression on his face.

Awaki stepped away from Izumi and Accelerator once they arrived. Izumi gave her a brief nod in thanks and she nodded back, disappearing. Izumi calmly walked up to the container where Aleister Crowley floated, his face expressionless. Accelerator was beside him, hiding his actual emotions behind a look of cool hostility.

No one spoke, until Aleister Crowley broke the silence.

"Necessarius's most powerful magician, code named Shadow Assassin, and seventh-ranked magician in the world by fighting power. Welcome. The same goes to you, Accelerator.

"Aleister Crowley, I presume?" Izumi said, his voice cool and business-like. "Why have you called us here?" If he was surprised that Aleister Crowley knew his code name, he did not show it.

"It has recently come to my attention that Accelerator is also a child of magic, not just an esper."

"How long have you known?"

"If you, your brother Tsukasa and Laura Stuart were hoping to surprise me about an eighteen-year-old plot, I already knew about it. Although, I had yet to know which esper was also a magician. Three days ago, there was a flow of magic that was not from the magicians in this city. The source was traced back to Accelerator, much to my surprise."

 _As if. He never seems surprised,_ Accelerator thought. "Why did you call us here then?" He asked.

"You should already know what I'm going to ask. I see that your ability is back. Will you fight for the Science side that you have been in all your life, or will you fight for your father's side, the magic side?"

Choosing to answer later, Accelerator replied with a question of his own. "I know that a child born of science and magic will not find a place in either world, and be targeted constantly. Will you guarantee that I will not be targeted by you once the war is finished?"

"If you fight for the Science side, you will give us a large advantage in the war. I make no guarantees, but I will not send anyone to kill you after the war. I cannot say the same for the magicians or anyone in the city that rejects magic."

"That's all I need to hear. I will fight for the Science side."

"What about you, Shadow Assassin?"

"I fight for family and friends, not for the Romans. If you pushed me to choose, I will fight for the Science side."

"Your Necessarius comrades will join you, will they not? And Imagine Breaker?"

"They will fight if I ask. And there is the matter of Tsukiko Shizuka."

"She is a pure magician, although she has no ties to the Catholic Church. Do you know which side she shall fight for?"

"She has bonded with those in the Science side. She should be fighting for the Science side."

"The Romans will send the declaration in exactly 13 days. Goodbye."

Awaki reappeared and transported the two out of the Windowless Building. Aleister Crowley watched them go, a small smile curving across his lips. "Did they really think they could surprise me? The only reason I didn't target Accelerator in the first place was due to his ability and reputation. This war will truly be an interesting spectacle to watch. Two archangels bringing their fight down to Earth. Will darkness triumph over light, or will it be vanquished?" He fell silent again, floating in the container of fluid.

 _In the apartment_

Awaki deposited Accelerator ungracefully onto the ground, making sure to set Izumi on the couch, and disappeared. Accelerator sat up, rubbing his head.

"That little..."

"Looks like she doesn't like you very much," Izumi said, laughing at Accelerator's angry face.

"Of course she doesn't. There's a complicated past. I'm guessing this is part of her revenge from me beating her up months ago."

"Oh, you guys are back? I left breakfast in the kitchen if you're hungry." Yoshikawa said, looking into the living room. Izumi and Accelerator shook their heads at the same time. Yoshikawa sighed. "Well, now I know where Accelerator gets his unhealthy habit of not eating."

"Don't forget the coffee," Izumi said with a smirk on his face.

"Oh, right. That too. That reminds me, I need to buy a lot more coffee when I go grocery shopping today or else you guys will go crazy. Just saying, your coffee supply is close to zero, Accelerator. Izumi drank the majority in these few days.'

"How many cans are left?"

"Two."

"Fine by me." Accelerator went into the kitchen and grabbed the two cans, tossing one to Izumi when he exited.

Izumi opened the can and drank it all in one swig. "Ah, now I feel much better. Accelerator, we have 13 days to train. I'm not going to hold back, so prepare yourself for literal hell. We start now."

Accelerator groaned internally, but followed Izumi out the door.

 _On the rooftop_

Izumi had put up the blue dome again, although under the sunlight, the dome was transparent, an occasional rippling of blue light the only reminder it existed. Accelerator went over to Izumi.

"Won't everyone look up at the rooftop and see us?"

"No. This particular barrier blocks anyone else outside from seeing what's going on inside. To a regular bystander, they'll just see the rooftop. Essentially, we're invisible. Although to a trained magician, we'd be seen easily."

"I see. Where do magicians get their spells from?"

"Spell books and grimoires. Although some are passed down orally. Spell books are the easiest way to learn since anyone can read them. Grimoires are similar to spell books, but are way more powerful. Only the purest or the most powerful of magicians can lay their eyes on the pages, since they are written by ancient power. Index has read and memorized 103,000 grimoires."

"Is she really powerful?"

"I don't even know. She does have a really strong photographic memory. Whatever the case, she is pretty powerful. She doesn't outrank me since she is unable to use some powerful magic in some grimoires."

"Did you read any grimoires?"

"Yeah. I wouldn't call myself pure, but I am powerful. My memory's not that good, so I couldn't memorize much. I did learn some really powerful offensive, defensive and healing spells from your father though. Once I learned all of that, I became a pretty powerful magician. Here's one thing you need to know: a magician's power isn't based on the spells you know. It's based on your heart and mind. Your will also plays a part. If your will is weak, you can easily lose control of the spell and end up killing yourself."

"So I need a strong heart, mind and will."

"Yeah. Don't ever lose your control or temper during a powerful spell, or you'll end up destroying yourself. Also, at first, your magic level will be low, so don't cast too many spells. Once you start training, your magic level will increase so you can expand the number of spells used before you have to take a break."

"This makes almost no sense," Accelerator grumbled.

"Trust me, once I get you started on using magic, it'll all make sense."

"What's a grimoire anyway?"

"Books that contain old, ancient power. They cannot be destroyed, but they can be sealed away."

"Barely makes any sense, but okay. Also, what did Aleister Crowley call you-Shadow Assassin?"

"It's not much of a code name. It's the name my targets gave me."

"Why?"

"I usually get dispatched to assassinate rogue magicians or to kill demons. Striking under the cover of darkness and shadows is the best idea since no one can see you. That's what I always do."

"That seems interesting."

"Perhaps if your magic training goes smoothly I'll teach you how I usually work."

"Alright. Also, what's with the 'seventh-ranked in fighting power?'"

"In the world, I'm ranked seventh in fighting magic. Your father was third. In terms of overall magic power, we are on low ranks."

"So who's at the top for overall magic power?"

"There are a lot of them. The first two in fighting power are also in the same ranks as magic power. Next comes the 4 members of God's Right Seat. Either that, or it's the Roman Catholic Pope. I don't study them that much, so I'm not so sure. They do have enough power to render the earth to ashes though."

"I see."

"With the amount of power you'll have when you're done training, I'll risk letting you read a grimoire."

"Is it okay?"

"I'll show you a weaker grimoire called the Moonlight Codex. Your father wrote it."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It wasn't that powerful of a grimoire, but he recorded some really good spells in there. Index memorized it, so she can show you."

"Well, what's the point of letting me read a grimoire if you don't know what's going to happen to me?"

"I know you won't be affected by the grimoire. Tsukasa put a spell on it, so it's sentient. It'll recognize you since you're his son."

"Even if I'm an esper?"

"Doesn't matter what you are. Blood runs deeper than that. No matter what happens, family is still family. That's what Tsukasa told me."

Izumi was facing away from Accelerator, staring out at the city again. Accelerator couldn't see the expression on Izumi's face, but his tone of voice was strange. It wasn't cold, but it wasn't warm either.

 _I don't get him. Still, he's related to me._ Remembering that Stiyl had told Kanzaki that Izumi never got over the loss of his brother and sister-in-law, he didn't push Izumi to say anything else about his parents.

Izumi turned back to Accelerator, his face expressionless again. "I'm getting nowhere reminiscing about the past."

"You seem so cut off from the world."

"It doesn't really matter. I keep to myself and nobody pokes their head in my business. Very convenient for me."

 _He's more of a recluse than I was before I rescued the brat._

"Well then, should we start? I think I can remove the bind on your magic powers."

"Don't you remember what happened hours earlier?!"

"Why do you think you can reflect magic?"

Taken back by the question, Accelerator stayed silent, considering the possibilities. Izumi replied for him. "Your esper ability was being reinforced by magic. It takes magic to reflect magic."

"You said you put a bind on my magic."

"Half-truth. In reality, that bind allows you to use a bit of your magic, but not all of it. From this morning's training, you should be able to control your magic yourself."

"Fine, but you're the one telling the brat what happened if this kills me."

"I know what I'm doing. Concentrate."

Izumi spoke a spell, and Accelerator felt a rush of energy flow through him, and another wave of pain. Concentrating, he forced the magic to work with his ability, instead of clashing with it. Eventually, the flow of energy faded, but Accelerator felt more powerful than ever.

Izumi watched with approval. "See? I told you I knew what I was doing. Well, you've mastered the ability to keep your esper ability and magic from clashing. Using them together or separately without them clashing is something different entirely."

"How do you know all this?"

"Research and study. Not to mention I've studied espers ever since you were born."

"How are you going to teach me then?"

"Starting from the very beginning, of course. The first time we trained, I taught you hand-to-hand combat. Back then, you only used your normal strength, reflexes and speed. Right now, your magic is enhancing your reflexes, strength and speed. With the right training, your magic will make you the best hand-to-hand combat esper. Eventually, you'll be able to use your magic for only one move, making that one extra-powerful."

"Let's get started then."

"I'm going to put you through literal hell. I will not give you a break unless you fall unconscious."

Remembering what Izumi had put him through in the morning, Accelerator prepared himself for another brutal session.

 _6 hours later_

Surprisingly, Accelerator found himself still standing, although he knew he wouldn't be able to last for another couple minutes. His ability and strength had been completely exhausted, and the only thing keeping him standing was his will, although he wasn't aware of it.

On the other hand, Izumi only looked a little tired. His pale face was flushed, and his breathing was only slightly harder than it was earlier.

"I'm surprised you're still standing," Izumi called over to Accelerator.

"I'm surprised myself." Accelerator replied.

"I'm already at my magical limit. The spells I used weren't that draining, but continuously using magic for 6 hours straight isn't a good idea. My physical strength is getting close to the limit. How about you?"

"I seriously don't know what's still keeping me standing."

"Your will, most likely. Forget what I said earlier. Let's rest. I think I have enough magic to perform one more spell." Moving his hands in the pattern again, Izumi spoke the same word. Accelerator felt his strength come back to him.

Izumi let the dome dissipate, and laid down on the roof beside Accelerator, gazing at the sky. "You've surprised me on many accounts. I think I can teach you a spell soon."

"Really?"

"It's the spell I just performed. It heals injuries and restores energy and magic. If you're out of strength when fighting, this spell is the best."

"Doesn't it use magic?"

"Nope. You only have to have the blood of a magician in your veins. That way, you can use it to restore your magic even if your magic levels are at zero."

"Tell me next time." A thought suddenly occurred to Accelerator. "This morning, you said you saw a different future. What exactly happened?"

Izumi sighed. "I wish you'd forgotten. You were only 3 when I received that vision. When I saw that vision, I couldn't speak to Tsukasa for days, fearing it would slip out and he'd panic."

"Just tell me."

"Until the 10032nd experiment, your life was exactly the same. When Misaka Mikoto brought Kamijou Touma into the fight, that's when the vision deviated from the actual."

"What happened?"

"You killed Kamijou Touma in the fire, and severely injured Misaka Mikoto."

Accelerator was stunned into silence. After a few minutes, he spoke. "I stopped the fire in this life."

"You had enough time to jump to a safe place. I told you by then, your humanity was slowly beginning to crack."

"What happened then?"

"Since Kamijou was a level 0, there wasn't much impact on the experiments. Misaka Mikoto survived, so that didn't count. You continued killing the clones one by one. When you killed MISAKA-20000, your power was enough to surpass level 5, so essentially, you reached level 6. By that time, your ability was terrifying."

"How?"

"You were able to manipulate vectors at great distances. Your weakness that was discovered and exploited by Kihara Amata was non-existent. In simple terms, you were invincible."

"You said I formed my own organization."

"That was the worst part of it. You convinced Kakine Teitoku's SCHOOL to merge with your organization, and you even managed to recruit the mysterious sixth-ranked level 5 esper."

"What did my organization do?"

"It was called REBEL. With the right members, you hacked into the security and leaked all the secrets, throwing the public into a panic. Eventually, the city fell apart from the chaos. When that happened, you destroyed the city."

"Was there any aim or goal? It sounds a little too messed up."

"I told you that your humanity was gone. You were essentially insane. You didn't care if someone in your group died. I'm guessing all you wanted to see was destruction and death."

"..."

"Finally, your 18th birthday came. The seal broke, but there was no one to control it. The overflow of magic killed you. I know nothing else. What I told you was what I saw. There was nothing able to explain what happened."

Accelerator didn't speak or say a word, too lost in the past. Remembering the events that had happened in experiment number 10032 and what could have happened, he was too stunned to even move. Finally, he asked one question: "Is this what would have happened if I wasn't stopped?"

Izumi stared at the sky. "Who knows? There are plenty of possibilities that could have been. Maybe in another life, you reached level 6, but you retained your humanity. Another possibility was that you were born as a magician. There are even possibilities that you could have been the weakest esper. Maybe you were never related to magic at all. There are an infinite number of possibilities, but only one is carried out. Being a diviner means you have to deal with many different possible futures. Surprisingly, Tsukasa and I barely got any possibilities. We only received visions of what would happen and what has to happen."

"Maybe you guys were special," Accelerator said in a quiet tone.

Izumi sighed. "Sorry for telling you all this. It must have been quite a shock."

"At least I know I won't ever be like that now."

"True. You have people with you who may seem overbearing at times, but they care. Come on, let's go back. This is enough for today."

The two walked back to the apartment, each lost in their own thoughts. Seeing the expressions on their faces when Yoshikawa let them in, she didn't say a word.

Izumi went over to a couch, leaning back. Accelerator turned to Yoshikawa, snapping out of his thoughts.

"Where should I sleep tonight?"

"I don't know. Take one of the couches or you can sleep in Shizuka's room. I'm not too sure if you can sleep in your room right now."

"I'll take the couch."

"You're roommates with Izumi then. By the way, I got you guys a large supply of coffee when I went shopping."

"Thanks, Kikyou."

"No problem, Izumi. However, please don't drink it all in a few days. You probably beat Accelerator in consuming coffee."

"Comes with the job. I have to deal with jet lag constantly. By the way, is there any news worth watching?"

"They're replaying the news from this morning. Nothing else. When will Shizuka wake up?"

"Shizuka should be up in 2 or 3 days. Earliest is tomorrow. Latest is 5 days."

"Hopefully she wakes up by tomorrow. I contacted Heaven Canceller yesterday and he says Last Order is anxious to come back. She misses both Accelerator and Shizuka."

"How's the brat doing there?"

"The doctor says she's moping. Physically, she's fine. Emotionally, I don't know. Even her sisters can't make her smile."

"Izumi, can't we bring the brat back now?"

"If she can obey orders to stay out of your room. Plus, do not ever let her out of your sight until Shizuka wakes up."

"I think she and the doctor would agree to the terms. I'll call him right now." Yoshikawa took out her cellphone and tapped in a number, moving into her room.

Izumi turned to Accelerator. "What does Last Order think of you as?"

Accelerator had a thoughtful look on his face. "I don't know. A guardian, most likely."

"I doubt it. In these days while you were in a coma, Kikyou and Aiho have been telling me stories of you two."

"And what's your conclusion?"

"She sees you as family."

"I can live with that."

Just then, Yoshikawa reentered the room. "The doctor says we can go over and pick her up."

"Someone has to watch over Shizuka," Izumi said.

"Can you call Index and Kamijou?"

"Give me a cellphone." Accelerator threw his phone to Izumi, who caught it and tapped in a number. He quickly explained the situation, and hung up. "10 minutes."

"Well, let's wait."

"What time is it?"

"4:00 pm."

"They'd better hurry. I told the doctor we'd be there by 4:20."

Precisely 10 minutes later, Index and Touma arrived at the apartment. To Accelerator's surprise, Touma was covered with bandages. Remembering what Izumi had said earlier, he chose to smirk at the unfortunate level 0. Ignoring him, Yoshikawa ushered them in, quickly saying her thanks.

"You two already know your way around. I left some food in the fridge if you get hungry. Please don't mess the place up. We'll be back in half an hour approximately."

"Don't worry, Yoshikawa-san. Everything will be fine." Index replied.

"Thanks again, Librorum Prohibitorum." Izumi said, exiting after Yoshikawa. Accelerator followed after, not sparing any of them a glance.

The trio made of an esper-magician, magician and ex-scientist went into the car, and Yoshikawa set the address to the frog-faced doctor's house on the GPS. She turned to Accelerator and Izumi. "The trip is 10 minutes."

"Let's go then."

 _At Heaven Canceller's house_

The doctor was waiting at the front door alone. Yoshikawa and Izumi got out of the car, greeting him. Accelerator stayed in the car, watching the scene unfold. Behind the doctor, the door opened and 4 clones came out. The last one, MISAKA-10032, was attempting to tug a smaller girl out of the house. Eventually, the clone gave up and went to stand with her other sisters. Accelerator could dimly see Last Order inside, turning her head from side to side, trying to spot someone. Finally, the little girl came out and immediately ran over to Yoshikawa, apparently asking a question.

Yoshikawa smiled at the clone and motioned her towards the car, where Accelerator was barely visible through the tinted windows. Last Order's face lit up and she ran towards the car. When she was halfway there, she tripped and nearly fell, but she suddenly found arms supporting her. Accelerator set her back on her feet with his trademark scowl on his face.

"Watch your step, brat. Have you gotten more clumsy in these 3 days?" As an afterthought, he turned off the automatic reflection shield around him.

Ignoring his jab, Last Order threw her arms around Accelerator's waist and hugged him hard. "'Accelerator! You're awake! MISAKA missed you so much,' says MISAKA as MISAKA holds in her tears of joy."

"Don't cry, brat. It was only 3 days. I'm here now, aren't I?"

Last Order chose not to respond, but held on tighter. Accelerator winced with the increasing pressure. "Yoshikawa, get the brat off me!"

"Aw, but I think this is rather endearing. Don't you think so, Izumi?"

"I agree. Just bear with it, Accelerator."

The frog-faced doctor, Heaven Canceller, cleared his throat, causing Izumi to snap his head back to the doctor. "There is one more thing I must tell you."

"Yes?"

"You have heard about how magic and science cannot mix in a body?"

"You are referring to Tsuchimikado Motoharu, are you not?"

"Yes. In truth, I am rather surprised Accelerator and Shizuka are unaffected."

"That's probably due to my interference on Shizuka's part. As for Accelerator, it's in his blood."

"I see. I do not know all the details, but it seems like that kid must step out onto another battlefield again."

"He plays an important role. You are right, though. He has been rescued from a battlefield months ago, but he must step into another one."

"This one is physical, is it not?"

"Yes."

"Has he been properly taught to use his full powers?"

Izumi winced. "Not yet."

"That is far beyond your expertise, Izumi, and you know it. Perhaps if Tsukasa were still alive-"

"That's not possible and you know it."

"You still have not gotten over their deaths, have you?"

"Don't ask."

"I can see it clearly in your eyes. To this day, I regret not having enough power to save him and Luna."

"There wasn't much you could do anyways," Izumi said bleakly. "You tried."

"Even if my name suggests I can cancel out Heaven, I simply do not have enough power to save people who were affected by strong supernatural power directly."

"Stop dwelling on that. At least you saved Accelerator."

"Only because his ability was triggered. He made it out with minor injuries. I sometimes consider if that was the reason for his near-insanity: watching his parents die when he was only 4."

"You do know said kid is here right now and could be listening."

"He's still preoccupied with Last Order." As the two watched, Accelerator was still trying to pry Last Order off him while Yoshikawa just stood there and laughed, occasionally trying to coax Last Order off to no avail.

"Well, I have two things to tell all of you. One, please be careful. Two, I will always be here to save you if you are alive."

"Good to know, Doc. We should go. Bye."

Heaven Canceller turned and walked back into the house, MISAKAs 10032, 10039, 13577, and 19090 following him. Last Order stepped away temporarily from Accelerator to wave goodbye to her sisters, and promptly latched back onto Accelerator, much to his dismay. However, he gave up trying to pry her off him and let her hold onto his arm.

"Let's go back, Kikyou."

"Okay. Come on, Last Order."

"'Okay!' Says MISAKA as MISAKA gets in the car."

"One thing, brat: don't go in my room since Shizuka's still asleep. Stay out of there at all times until she wakes up, do you hear me?" Accelerator had a scary glare on his face, but Last Order was used to it. She nodded.

"Good."

"Well, now that's out of the way, what should we do tonight?" Yoshikawa switched gears and drove towards the main streets.

"Accelerator's done enough training for one day. Maybe just relax then."

"Hard to do when Shizuka's sleeping."

"When's Aiho coming back?"

"She should be back already. I'm not too sure, since she was complaining about her crazy schedule these days."

"Isn't school starting soon?"

"September 1. That's in 10 days. Forget Anti-Skill work, she's probably preparing early for school."

"Does Accelerator go to school?"

"Hell no. Don't even try dragging me to one of these schools, Izumi."

"Dropout, huh? Can't blame you. School's boring. Besides, your ability and calculations should already make you an expert at math and science. Out of curiosity, what about the other Level Fives?"

"Kakine Teitoku, no idea. Railgun goes to Tokiwadai. Mugino Shizuri, no idea. Mental Out, Tokiwadai. Number six, no one knows, and I think Sogiita Gunha goes to Nagatenjouki. Nobody knows for sure."

"Hmph, you guys are setting bad examples for the lower levels." Izumi smirked. "Just kidding."

"Not like I care."

"We're back."

"'Yay!' Exclaims MISAKA as MISAKA jumps off the car."

Yoshikawa unlocked the door to find a neater apartment than when they had left. Index and Touma were on the couch, watching TV.

"We're back!" Yoshikawa called.

"Welcome back, Kikyou." Yomikawa stepped out of her room, waving to the four. She smiled at Last Order. "How was the three days?"

"'MISAKA felt homesick, but it was okay,' says MISAKA as MISAKA reports her previous situation."

"Well, how about you go rest for a while? You should take a break."

Last Order nodded and went off to her makeshift room-well, Shizuka's actual bedroom, letting go of Accelerator's hand. Accelerator let out a mental sigh of relief, but his relief was interrupted when Yoshikawa pointed him to Last Order's bedroom.

"Keep an eye on her."

"I already told her not to go in my bedroom," he grumbled.

"Just making sure. You know she disobeys orders often."

"Tch, fine." Accelerator stalked off to Last Order's bedroom, muttering complaints under his breath.

Izumi turned to Index and Touma. Without any greeting, he asked: "How's Shizuka? Any change?"

"She's getting closer to waking up. The magic circles in the other rooms have faded, and the ones in Shizuka's room are close to fading," Index reported.

"Well, that's better for us. Thanks again."

"Do you two want to stay for a while? I'm making dinner," Yomikawa offered.

"Thank you! Your food is so much better than Touma's."

"I take offense to that comment," Touma muttered.

Yomikawa smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of her head. "Can't be perfect at everything."

"Were you cleaning again, Aiho?"

"Eh, yeah. Something came up."

"Well, looks like we don't have to clean the place for another few weeks."

"Anyways, what time is it now?"

"5:15."

"I'm taking a nap." Izumi stretched out on the empty couch and closed his eyes.

Yomikawa raised an eyebrow. "You're not gonna be sleeping tonight then."

"I have no intention to. Besides, I still haven't slept off 6 hours of training Accelerator."

"So that's what you've been doing the entire time when you got back?"

"So? What about it?" Izumi turned his face to the back of the couch, saying nothing else.

A minute later, the sound of a phone ringing cut through the air. Quickly taking out his phone, Touma answered.

"Kami-yan, are you available?"

"Tsuchimikado? What's going on?"

"Stiyl ran into some trouble, and the stubborn guy needs help. I can't do much, unfortunately. You should go help him, Kami-yan."

"What's happening?"

"He got ambushed by someone from the Roman Catholic Church. She's working independently, however. Her name is Nathalia Pyxia."

"Where is he?"

"They're around District 23. Oh, and bring Izumi-san with you."

"Uh, okay."

"Hurry up."

Touma flipped his phone shut and turned to Izumi, but Izumi was already sitting up, an annoyed look on his face.

"Who are we up against? It better be important or else I'm going back to sleep."

"Some girl from the Roman Catholic Church working independently for some reason. Her name's Nathalia Pyxia."

Izumi groaned irritably. "Oh, no. Not her. Anyone but her. Well, I'm surprised she didn't show up sooner."

"Who is she?"

"The girlfriend of the lightning mage Stiyl rescued Accelerator from. I bet she's here for revenge. She's extremely annoying."

"Seems like you've ran into her a couple times," Index observed.

"Typical cliché high school girl type you see in whatever anime or manga that's popular these days. Super shallow and whiny and annoying. Except she's in her mid-twenties. She's like her boyfriend: a powerful lightning mage, but I guess she broke away from the church when he got killed."

"And she's fighting against Stiyl right now."

"We should hurry up," Izumi yawned. "Fire and lightning don't mix. And in the condition you're in, Imagine Breaker, I doubt you can do much. Maybe I'll bring Accelerator to observe."

"I heard my name. What the hell is going on? By the way, the brat fell asleep."

Quickly explaining the situation, Izumi watched Accelerator's expression change from half-annoyed to gleeful. "Finally I get to see some action."

"We should hurry."

"True. Let's go."

The three guys ran out the door, the sounds of their footsteps trailing off into the distance.

 _District 23_

There are times when magicians would thank rune cards for enchanting normal humans to keep away from the area. This time was now, as the normally bustling District 23 was completely empty, save for two magicians. Around them, buildings were burnt and scorched, some still on fire.

Stiyl Magnus was on one side, breathing heavily. Scorch marks caused his usual black attire to hang raggedly about him, and there were injuries all about him.

On the other side was a lightning mage, Nathalia Pyxia. She looked like a typical high school girl: perfect long blond hair, a perfect figure, and too much makeup. She looked perfectly fine, not even one hair out of place. She would have looked somewhat pretty had the look of pure rage not settled on her face.

"You're still not dead? Fine! I will avenge my boyfriend by killing you with this last blow!"

"Oh shut up, you bitch. Half the time we fought, I was hearing you wail on and on about your poor boyfriend."

"He didn't deserve to die such a dishonourable death!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Fortis931! Innocentius!"

The ferocious flame god appeared, roaring. Nathalia smiled. "That little boy again? Fine then. Cura735!"

 _A healer that eventually changed to a lightning mage. Who knew she'd be better at that?_

Swearing under his breath, he realized that the crazy lightning mage was going to use the same spell her boyfriend used on Accelerator.

 _Dammit. Even Innocentius can't protect me from that many lightning bolts._

As thunder rumbled in the sky and the lightning bolts shot down, Stiyl heard a voice that caused him to sigh in relief.

"Ultor248!"

 _The one who will take vengeance on all his enemies, and avenge his fallen comrades._  
Izumi appeared on the scene, shouting a spell. The lightning promptly dissipated.

Touma ran over to Stiyl. "Stiyl! Are you alright?"

"You look worse than I am, Kamijou Touma."

Accelerator came up calmly behind Izumi, an interested look on his face. "So this is a magician fight? Well, I hope you guys have something to say to the authorities once the rune cards are down.

Nathalia snapped her head towards Accelerator. Her face twisted with rage. "You!"

"Huh? Do I know you? I think I should be able to remember a clown face." Accelerator's voice sounded extremely bored.

"You're the one my boyfriend was sent to kill. I'll finish the job for him!"

"Tch, who's your boyfriend again? I don't recall a blonde bitch attacking me with the blond asshole. Oh, so are you his ex? Decided to be his faithful lapdog now that he's dead? Oh wait, how can you be his lapdog when he's dead?"

"Shut up! I'm killing you now!"

Immediately, multiple lightning bolts were shot towards Accelerator. Smiling sadistically, he reflected the lightning back at her, and then slammed his foot on the ground, uprooting it before she had a chance to react. She crashed into a building.

Accelerator turned back to Izumi. "That was boring."

"You know she's not dead yet. Nice insults, by the way. They're bound to make her more reckless."

"Of course not. That would make it more boring. Taunting opponents is almost second nature since I did it all the time. Can I just fight her myself?"

"Sure. Don't kill her. I want to interrogate her. And I will step in if it comes to a standstill."

"Ah, sure. Just let me have some fun." The sadistic smile on Accelerator's face had a tinge of mania in it.

As if on cue, Nathalia climbed out of the building, a look of pure hate on her face. Her hair was now sticking out from the once-neat style and she had a few bruises on her face.

"You ruined my outfit and hair! You're going to pay double for this!"

"First thing you worry about is your clothing and hair? Geez, if you're so girly, then I'll let you go to the mall first."

"Shut up you sorry excuse for an esper! I bet you could only reflect my lightning since it wasn't magical. I won't do the same thing next time!"

Accelerator's expression turned calm, but scary. He spoke in n eerily quiet tone. " _I'm_ a sorry excuse for an esper? Do you even know who you're calling a _sorry excuse for an esper?!_ You're calling the first-ranked level 5 esper out of 2.8 million espers in this city a sorry excuse for an esper? Oh, when I'm done with you, your outfit's not gonna be the only thing you're gonna complain about."

Laughing maniacally, he controlled the vectors and flew into the air, landing on a building rooftop. "Come on, fight this sorry excuse for an esper! If I'm what you think I am, you should be able to beat me easily!

Screaming, the girl flew towards Accelerator, lightning crackling around her body. A second before she crashed into Accelerator, he sidestepped and kicked her, sending her flying into another building.

He started taunting her again. "Come on, weren't you saying you were going to kill me? Then stop flying into buildings!"

"I will kill you!" The girl flew onto another rooftop, raising her hands to the sky, chanting. Thunder rumbled again, and multiple bolts of magical lightning shot down at Accelerator. Remembering the time he had taken all the bolts head-on, he flew away. The bolts followed him and he reflected them onto the building the girl was on, causing the entire thing to collapse.

Nathalia stumbled out of the wreckage. Her clothing was in tatters, and she looked completely different from the composed girl that had snuck upon Stiyl.

She glared at Accelerator with hate and rage on her face. "You...I swear you will die by my hands!"

"Explain the phenomenon of why you're the beat up one. If you were going to kill me, then shouldn't I be the one looking worse for wear? Unless you're a masochist, that is." He snickered at his own insult.

Nathalia shot lightning at the foot of the building Accelerator was on, making it collapse. Accelerator quickly jumped to another building, and then another, moving too fast for the lightning mage to keep up. Eventually, his speed was almost at the speed of sound, moving from building to building with agility that surprised even Izumi.

Nathalia shot lightning randomly, hoping to get a lucky shot. With every missed shot, her face twisted more and more with rage.

"Stop moving and let me kill you, esper!"

"You, kill me? I'll pass." Accelerator suddenly appeared to one side of her and whispered the words in her ear. When she whirled around, he had moved quickly behind her. "Too late, you couldn't catch me. And this is what a sorry excuse of an esper can do. I could probably reverse your blood flow and make your body explode-" he quickly sidestepped a lightning bolt "-but I can't kill you today, so I'll settle for this." Stepping behind her again, he hit her on the back of her neck, causing her to fall unconscious.

He turned to face Izumi, but he was mildly surprised when he found the trio gaping at him. "What? Don't look at me like you've never seen a fight. Anyways, what do we do with all the destroyed buildings?"

Snapping out of his shock, Izumi muttered a spell. Miraculously, the buildings began to repair themselves. After 5 minutes, the buildings looked clean, neat, and whole. The rune cards were still present.

Izumi turned to Accelerator with a scowl on his face. "Why didn't you show any of that speed when I was training you?"

Accelerator shrugged. "It only came to me when I was fighting."

"H-how did you fight like that?" Touma stuttered.

"I've got a teacher. Honestly, I'm not that guy you beat up nearly a year ago who got too cocky for his own good. Besides, I used magic to enhance reflexes and speed in addition to my vector changing ability. Anyways, shouldn't we head back?"

"Stiyl, want to come back with us?"

"No, I'll be fine."

Izumi raised an eyebrow. "I doubt you're fine in that condition. Anyways, how did you get so beat up? I know you're stronger than that."

"She snuck up on me when I was completely off-guard."

"Exactly why you should be on guard at all times. Well, can't blame you. You probably mistook her for some student in this city." In one fluid step, Izumi stood in front of Stiyl and performed the healing spell. Stiyl nodded at Izumi in appreciation.

Izumi moved away from Stiyl and picked up the unconscious lightning mage, draping her form over his shoulder. "Accelerator, is there any abandoned place you know of?"

"Yeah."

"Take me there. Go back to the apartment, Kamijou Touma. Tell Aiho and Kikyou that we're training."

"Uh, okay."

"Good. Accelerator, lead me to the place you have in mind. I have some interrogation to do."

"Didn't you say she abandoned the Roman Catholic Church? There shouldn't be any information she knows then."

"I know she left only a few days ago. There should be a sufficient amount of information that she knows. Come on."

Without a word Accelerator followed Izumi out of District 23, leaving Touma and Stiyl to their own devices.

 _Abandoned laboratory_

Izumi whistled as Accelerator led him into a darkened laboratory.

"This is a nice place for interrogation."

"It was abandoned after Railgun attacked it during the Level 6 Shift Project. You might see damage here and there."

"All I need is a sealed off room, a chair, some rope, and some duct tape."

"First two things are easy, last two I do not carry with me."

"Oh, lead me to a sealed off room then. Preferably with as little metal as possible. Magic can take the place of rope and tape."

Trying to recall the layout of the place, Accelerator led Izumi around a few floors until they reached the basement, where they stopped at a plain opaque fiberglass door.

Izumi nodded appreciatively. "Nice choice."

"It's a boardroom. Inside is another closed-off door that is used for interrogation. Not a lot of metal if I recall correctly."

"Hurry up. I think she'll wake up soon."

"What are you going to do with her when you're done interrogating her?"

"I don't know, actually. All the interrogations I carried out before were on targeted criminals, and I killed them after. For her, I just don't think that's the right choice."

"Isn't there any spell to erase her memories?"

"Last time I tampered with memories, I created a living hell. I swore to myself that I would not use that spell ever again." Accelerator knew Izumi was talking about him.

"What other choices are there?" Accelerator kicked open the door, moving a nearby chair to the middle with his ability.

"That's it, I'm afraid. Needless to say, she might be rather happy to be reunited with her boyfriend." Izumi placed the girl on the chair and produced a length of silver rope, tying the hands, legs and feet together. He then looped the rope twice around the chair and the waist.

"What's that silver rope?"

"Blocks magic from being used and is unbreakable from the inside. Actually, before I interrogate her, we need to talk."

"What?"

"You held back, didn't you?"

"How did you know?"

"You didn't use plasma."

"You're referring to experiment number 10032?"

"Yeah."

"She was actually easy to beat. Dodge her lightning attacks and even a toddler could probably beat her."

"You know, she reminds me of you before the experiments ended."

"You're right."

Their conversation was cut off as Nathalia woke up, her eyes unfocused. They slowly focused, until she saw Accelerator and Izumi in front of her. Her face twisted with rage again.

"You!" She tried lunging at Accelerator, but the bonds held tight.

"Me." Accelerator had a look of pure boredom on his face. "You know, if you stopped making these faces, I might actually consider using the word 'pretty' to describe you. By the way, your makeup looks like it was put on by a clown who never saw a mirror." His voice was laced with thick sarcasm.

Ignoring him, Nathalia glared at Izumi. "What do you want?"

Izumi slowly walked around her chair, a bored look on his face just like Accelerator's. "Nothing in particular. Information would be nice. Perhaps you can tell us what the Roman Catholic Church has up their sleeves."

"Too bad for you, I left the church days ago."

"Still late enough to hold some nice tidbits of information that would benefit the Science side, would it not?"

"I'm not telling you assholes anything."

"Ah, sure. Of course, we could just leave you here all tied up with no access to necessities needed to live, but I'm not that cruel."

"Please, everyone in the Roman Catholic Church know how you interrogate your enemies, _Shadow Assassin._ "

"Nice to know I'm infamous. Oh, I do so love being a black spot on your usually spotless records. Well, we need answers. Comply with us and I'll let you go. Don't comply and your brain might just explode."

Accelerator repressed a shudder. Izumi wasn't insane like he was. Instead, the magician excluded casualness towards death and injury. In a way, that casualness was much scarier.

"I won't tell you a thing."

"Oh? Such a pity. Perhaps I'll just reunite you with your little boyfriend earlier."

"Oi, Izumi." Accelerator whispered a few words in Izumi's ear. Izumi considered it, and nodded.

"Looks like today's your lucky day, Nathalia Pyxia. He just saved your life. However, I'm still going to get my answers. Ultor248!"

Rune cards covered the ground, in the shape of a magic circle. The cards looked different from the ones Accelerator saw Stiyl use. Instead of a red and white star, Izumi's rune cards were white, with an intricately designed pattern of black diamonds alternating with indigo diamonds, in the pattern of a star made up of seven smaller stars.

Chanting in Aramaic, Izumi crouched down and touched the magic circle, trailing his fingers across certain areas of the magic circle. Wherever his fingers touched, a glittering silver trail followed.

When he finished, the silver light abruptly turned off, leaving only the marks of Izumi's hand. Nathalia was unconscious.

"Hey, what was that?! I thought you said you wouldn't kill her!"

"This spell requires preparation. We're lucky I didn't forget my rune cards. Don't worry, she's not dead."

Walking in front of Nathalia as close as he could get without touching the magic circle, he spoke. "State your name and affiliation."

Nathalia opened her eyes to reveal blank whites. "My name is Nathalia Pyxia, formerly of the Roman Catholic Church." Her voice was monotone and robotic, reminding Accelerator of the clones.

"When did you leave the Roman Catholic Church?"

"Three days ago, on August 18."

"Do you know who will invade Academy City?"

"The fifth-ranked magician in fighting power, under the influence of Lucifer the fallen angel, and his lackeys."

"Why will God's Right Seat not participate?"

"They have been ordered by Lucifer to stay out of the battle."

"Who are the lackeys you speak of?"

He was given seven names and abilities. Izumi swore. "Are they following him on their own or are they under the influence of Lucifer?"

"Nobody knows. They are very secretive."

"That is all I need." Snapping his fingers, the magic circle glowed and dissipated, leaving the girl still tied up on the chair, semi-conscious. Muttering another few words, Izumi slashed the bonds with a knife that appeared out of nowhere.

Nathalia looked at him, confused. "Why are you letting me go?"

"I have the information I need, and I don't feel like killing you. However, I did place one spell that cannot be taken off unless you sincerely promise this: to never attack Academy City or any of the people you have met today. If you ever come to this city again with foul intentions in mind, you will die instantly. Now, go."

Without a word the lightning mage hurried out the door.

Izumi sat on the chair, dusting off his hands. "Well, that went better than I expected."

"You were planning to kill her, weren't you?"

"It crossed my mind. Thanks to you, I remembered I had my rune cards for a truth spell."

"What were you going to do if I didn't say anything?"

"Use a spell that lets me see everything in her mind, but the aftereffects would have killed her. I placed that spell as an afterthought. We don't need another enemy. Anyways, what time is it?"

"6:30."

"Hmph. That took longer than I expected. We should hurry back before Kikyou gets suspicious. She knows that we're not training."

"How?"

"She overheard me saying that we already finished training for today. She'll probably guess we're up to something. Well, let's go."

"I have a few questions to ask."

"Shoot."

"What did you say before the spells?"

"Oh, my magician name. By tradition we are never to reveal it. However, it's somewhat like a calling card. Or, whenever a magician says it, it's something like a declaration of war to the death. Needless to say, I like saying it before a fight or a powerful spell."

"Oh. What does it mean?"

" _Qui omnia reddam ultionem hostibus meis, et vindictam suorum cecidit_."

"I don't speak whatever language you just said."

"Oh, sorry. It's Latin for 'The one who will take vengeance on all his enemies, and avenge his fallen comrades.' I found it rather fitting."

"It does. Hey, since Shizuka's a magician, doesn't that mean she has a magic name as well?"

"Perhaps. She was taught magic by her parents, so there's a possibility. Well, we're back."

"That was fast."

"Eh, I used a tiny bit of magic to speed us up without you knowing. In truth, Aiho's apartment was close to this place, if you didn't take a look around you."

 _In Yomikawa's apartment_

"We're back," Izumi announced.

"Oh welcome back. You're just in time for dinner. I made sukiyaki!" Aiho came out of the kitchen, carrying a large pot to the table.

Everyone else was sitting around the table. Accelerator and Izumi settled onto the couches, identical looks of mild disinterest on their faces.

Yoshikawa sighed. "Don't tell me you two aren't going to eat. Seriously, where did you two get your habit of not eating?"

"Not hungry." Accelerator sounded completely disinterested.

"I'll take some, but I'm not sitting at the table. I used up too much energy today. Accelerator, you should eat something. That healing spell helps restore energy, but if you want to make it through another training session, I suggest you eat some."

"Tch, fine."

"About time you ate a proper meal, Accelerator. Here you go." Yomikawa handed bowls to Accelerator and Izumi, and rejoined the others at the table.

Accelerator methodically put the food in his mouth, not bothering to look at what he was eating. On the other hand, Index was eating so quickly she was getting seconds and thirds in a matter of minutes.

"Hey, shouldn't you eat slower, Index? If you eat too quickly you're going to choke."

"This tastes so much better than your cooking Touma! I can't help it!"

Yomikawa laughed. "There's more in the kitchen. I decided to make extra since Kikyou let you guys stay."

"Yay, thank you so much!"

"No problem. It's nice to know some people enjoy my cooking besides these two boys over there who insist on not enjoying my food."

Said boys ignored her. Izumi finished the last bite and went to the kitchen, placing the bowl in the kitchen. Calling over his shoulder at Yomikawa, he said: "It's not that we don't enjoy the cooking, we just don't eat regularly. By the way Aiho, use some more spices." Going to where Accelerator was, he tapped the boy on the head. "Hurry up, I'm squeezing in one more training session. Librorum Prohibitorum, you're coming as well." The last comment was directed towards Index.

Quickly finishing up the last bites, Index and Accelerator followed Izumi out the door, and onto the rooftop.

 _On the rooftop_

"Want to know why I called you too, Librorum Prohibitorum?"

"Yes."

"I want you to show Accelerator the Moonlight Codex. You memorized it, yes?"

"But, but, isn't he an esper? The grimoire will kill him!"

"He's also a magician. Relax, the Moonlight Codex is sentient. It'll recognize Accelerator's relation to Tsukasa by blood. And if you don't show him, we won't win."

"Okay. Accelerator, hold my hands and close your eyes."

Doing as he was told, Accelerator saw himself floating in a void surrounded by books in his mind. Index was in front of him. As he watched, a silver-bound book floated in front of him. It had intricate swirls and designs on the borders. On the middle was a large silver crescent moon.

"Open the book." Index's voice sounded far away.

Accelerator took a breath and reached out one hand to open the book.

The book immediately exploded with a blinding light,

 **Sorry, I had to do a cliffhanger. Bye!**


	13. An Ancient Bloodline and Major Surprises

**I'm alive! Sorry for not updating in a long while. School's been super busy. High school kills people…. -_- Anyways, hope this super long chapter makes up for it. Considering school's already really busy, I might only update once a month or so. Thanks to SilentJo for reviewing chapter 12, please read/review/follow/favourite!**

The searing white light blinded Accelerator, but he didn't loosen his hold on the book. He could hear Index's frantic voice far away, but he had no idea what she was saying. He could feel something inside him start burning. Gritting his teeth, he ignored the pain and attempted to will the light away. He suddenly heard the voice of a young girl.

"That won't work unless I'm the one doing it. Oh wait, I recognize you. Tsukasa said you'd come looking for me. Well, looks like I can shut off the security measures." The white light died down as quickly as it had appeared. Realizing he wasn't holding on to the grimoire anymore, Accelerator looked around wildly to find himself in a library.

"Where am I, who are you and what do you want with me?!"

"You're inside a library, of course. Actually, this is another dimension, to be exact. Nice to meet you, Tsukasa's kid. I'm the Moonlight Codex." The said grimoire appeared in front of him, the pages open to the middle. Abruptly, silver light surrounded the book, causing it to warp its form. When it finished, a short young girl stood in front of him, around Last Order's age. She had long silver hair, pale, almost translucent skin, and silver crescent pupils in ocean blue irises. She was wearing a whitish blue silky dress that floated around her, decorated with silver and gold accents on the edges. Her feet were bare.

Accelerator stared at the young girl in shock. "You're the Moonlight Codex?"

"Tsukasa put a spell on me so I'm sentient and not just some dusty old grimoire like the others that are in the head of Index Librorum Prohibitorum. As an effect of that spell, I can also take on a human form. Again, I'll reiterate that I'm the Moonlight Codex."

"The human form of a grimoire seems quite young. Also, what's with the eyes?"

"Oh, I like this form. Much better than some old woman or something. Besides, I am called the Moonlight Codex because I was written under moonlight, hence my eyes. It's just a representation. By the way, you are Tsukasa's kid, right?"

"I'm not a kid, and I barely know my father. However, the answer to that question is yes."

"You are a kid. I'm older than you, in fact. Well, I will run one test to confirm the truth."

"Hey, you said you turned off the security measures or whatever since you recognized me."

"Something about you just reminds me of Tsukasa, but I like making sure. Now, give me your hand."

Extending his right hand, Accelerator started in surprise when the girl swiftly grabbed it. For a person who looked like a young girl, her grip was strong. To his surprise, she produced a knife and slashed it across his palm, drawing a large amount of blood to the surface, dripping in a steady stream onto the tiled ground.

"What the hell was tha-"

" _Silentium._ "

The strange, harsh language Accelerator somewhat knew to be Latin made him close his mouth, despite the stinging pain from his hand.

As he watched, the girl closed her eyes, holding her hand out to catch some of the blood. _"Cognoso: Accelerator, filius de Tsukasa. Dubium."_

 _Identify: Accelerator, son of Tsukasa. Accepted. Wait, how did I figure that out?_

A silver light burst into existence, surrounding the two. The young girl clasped her hands around Accelerator's bloody one, chanting. Somehow, Accelerator knew the words she was saying.

 _By the power in the Moonlight Codex, this grimoire will forever be embedded in your mind. By blood, we are bonded. I will be your helper. Awaken the secret power within this grimoire._

The silver light grew stronger, yet Accelerator wasn't blinded. He suddenly found himself on the rooftop again, Izumi and Index staring in awe. The light disappeared, leaving him and the young girl.

And finally, he blacked out.

 _Later_

"Oi, Accelerator, wake up!"

"What should we do, Izumi-san?"

"Leave him be. He will wake up around...now."

As if on cue, Accelerator opened his eyes to find Izumi and Index hovering over him. The girl stood nearby, a calm look on her face.

"About time you woke up."

"How long was I out?"

"Only a few minutes, but you were gone long enough for Index and I to panic. She was saying your presence had disappeared from her mind, and your body had disappeared as well. Not to mention the fact she can't remember anything from the Moonlight Codex anymore."

"That, I can explain." The girl walked up calmly, and helped Accelerator up.

Accelerator winced as the girl grabbed his cut hand. "The cut's still there, isn't it?"

"Yes. Don't worry, it already healed. Right now, it's just a scar."

"Okay, I think Index and I agree on one thing right now. _Explain._ "

"Don't get all worked up, Izumi. You already know I'm the human form of the Moonlight Codex, due to an effect of Tsukasa's spell. In reality, Index didn't just memorize me; she absorbed me. When Accelerator was exposed to the contents of the grimoire, the knowledge was transferred to him from Index-san, thereby allowing him to remember everything written inside me. However, Index will not be able to remember anything she saw in the codex."

"What's with the scar?"

"A binding spell, sealed by blood. Accelerator is free to use any spells I have, and I am his servant. Those were the orders from Tsukasa himself."

Izumi's eyes widened. "Nii-san wanted all this to happen?"

"Yes."

"Well, am I supposed to feel any differ-whoa, what the hell is this?" Accelerator held up his right arm. A thin silver chain was wrapped around it, a silver-bound book dangling from the chain.

"The Moonlight Codex," Index gasped in surprise.

"That is essentially me. I'm just the alive and sentient part of it. That's just the original book. You can will it to appear and disappear whenever you want. Of course, all the content inside the book is already in your mind. However, if you need reference or help, just open the book."

"I see."

"Well, you're truly unique. I thought the Moonlight Codex was sealed away." Izumi watched Accelerator with something like awe in his eyes.

"In Index's mind. Also, please call me Arin."

"Okay then, Arin. Well, are you technically human or what?"

"Hm, I don't actually know. Well, I guess I can be classified as a human-like spirit. Tsukasa never specified anything special for me when I was born. Well, I don't sleep, and I don't eat. Yeah, definitely not human. Also, don't let the Imagine Breaker near me, or else the magic in the Moonlight Codex will be destroyed."

"Okay, got it. But for now, are you going to be traipsing around in your human form?"

"Yeah. It's easier to communicate that way."

"Well, due to this unexpected turn of events, training's canceled. I was only planning for Index to show you the Moonlight Codex anyways, Accelerator."

"Doesn't mean you won't be hard on me tomorrow. One day of training and I already beat up a magician."

"You've progressed really quickly. I don't know what to do next. Well, I guess Arin can train you with the spells in the Moonlight Codex. I'll train Shizuka when she wakes up."

"We should head back."

"Still hungry, Librorum Prohibitorum? You ate three times as much as us."

"If you tried the things Touma makes, of course you'd want to eat more foods that weren't made by him."

"Ha, I think the level 0 would take offense to that."

"Well, the earlier I get acquainted with the rest of the group, the better."

"Tch, wait until the brat sees you. She'll probably think you can be a new playmate, Arin."

"Don't call people brats. Still, who is she?"

"A clone. Her name's Last Order."

"Oh wait, that name sounds familiar."

"How would you know?"

"We are bonded. If I concentrate, I can probably read your mind and know everything you know."

"How about you do that, so there's less of a hassle?"

"Okay. Izumi, Index, please go on ahead. This will only take a few minutes."

Glancing at Arin suspiciously, Izumi turned and left, Index trailing after him. Arin turned to Accelerator.

"I'm going to need your hand again."

"If you're cutting me with that knife again, no way in hell."

"That was a one-time thing. Just stay still. The more I know, the fewer questions I have to ask, and the less annoyed you'll get. That is what you'd act like, am I right?"

"You look like a little kid, but you know a lot."

"Stop focusing on the appearance already. I'm at least a decade older than you. I just like this form. Now, shush."

Arin took his hand again, chanting. Wispy halos of light extended from Accelerator's head towards Arin. Within minutes, the spell finished.

"Done. Oh, now I know what you guys are talking about. Well, let's hurry down before Izumi-san and Index-san spoil all the surprises."

"Fine. Also, how can you penetrate my reflection?"

"Easy. There will always be a type of magic you cannot reflect, and that is the magic of grimoires."

"I see."

"Well then, lead the way."

 _Yomikawa's apartment_

Everyone minus Izumi and Index started in surprise when they saw Arin enter with Accelerator. Last Order, who had came to the living room right after Accelerator had left, looked at the pair with curiosity and apprehension written all over her face. Arin studied each person carefully, and then hid behind Accelerator once she laid eyes on Touma.

" _Imagine Breaker,_ " she hissed.

"Uh, who is she and how does she know my ability?" Touma asked, confused.

"Leave her alone, level 0. If you touch her with your right hand, she'll lose all her magic."

Arin stepped out from behind Accelerator again, bowing to the group. "Sorry about that. I just got surprised. My name is Arin, and I am the human form of the Moonlight Codex, a grimoire that is now in Accelerator's possession, handed down from his father Tsukasa, who wrote me."

"Grimoire? Where'd you get that?"

"Isn't it obvious, level 0? From that sister." Accelerator held up his right arm, showing the silver-bound book dangling from the chain.

"Index, I thought you said you only memorized grimoires."

"I don't even know how this happened, Touma! Don't ask me!"

"Enough about this. If you have questions, ask me later. Honestly, give me a break. I'm only here to help Accelerator learn and use the magic properly in the Moonlight Codex, as per my former master's orders." Arin's silver crescent eyes had a dangerous glint. "Keep on pestering me and I'll show you just what kind of magic I possess." At that last word, her eyes glowed silver with power.

Obviously scared by her threat, Touma backed off. Accelerator snickered. Arin studied everyone in the group again, identifying each of them from Accelerator's memories.

"Hey, Accelerator. Should we introduce ourselves or what?"

"No need, Yomikawa-san."

"How do you know my name?!"

"I read Accelerator's memories so it'd be less of a hassle trying to introduce ourselves. Anyways, is this Last Order? Hello there." Arin sat down beside Last Order, smiling at her. "I'm Arin."

Last Order looked at her apprehensively, but after a minute, she smiled back, albeit a little shyly.

"You're a clone, right?"

"'Yes,' says MISAKA as MISAKA replies simply to the question. 'Are you human?'"

"Nope. I'm the living spirit of a grimoire. A grimoire is a very powerful book. I'm just the spirit."

"'And you are currently in Accelerator's possession?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA confirms the situation."

"Yeah. It's alright if you don't really understand. Do you want to be friends?"

"'Sure!' Says MISAKA as MISAKA smiles at her new friend."

Arin smiled back, and the two started giggling and chatting.

"Well, looks like they get along well." Izumi watched the two young girls converse.

"One less thing to worry about. For a second, I thought the brat would get the wrong idea."

"That she was replaced or something?"

"..." Accelerator looked away, not saying anything.

"I knew it, you do care." Ignoring Accelerator's protests, Izumi went on. "It's not your fault, Accelerator. You've stepped into a world she can't comprehend or live in."

"Well, she gets along well with the ones from the Magic Side."

"Can't blame them. She's cute. Although I have a feeling she's terrified of me."

"It's most likely the scar."

Izumi instinctively put a hand to his scar. "Forgot to put on a glamour. I'm getting old. Well, I'll use it now."

Muttering a spell under his breath, the scar disappeared from Izumi's face. He now looked exactly like Accelerator minus the hair and eye colour.

Accelerator started in surprise. "I look almost exactly like you."

"Ha, so you have me to thank for devilishly good looks. Tsukasa and I were always surprised since you resemble me more. Well, if you didn't have the reflection ability, I'd guess you'd have the same looks as both of us."

"..."

"Ah, don't ignore me. I'm just making guesses."

"Whatever did happen for you to get that scar?"

"Nothing much. Got into a fight with something-, no, _someone_ much more powerful than me."

Accelerator knew Izumi was lying, but he didn't bother pushing Izumi any further. Their conversation was interrupted when Index and Touma decided to make their leave.

"Thank you for your hospitality, but we should leave now." Index bowed to Yoshikawa and Yomikawa.

"Ah, it's no problem. Come back anytime! Oh, by the way, Kamijou."

"Yes, Yomikawa-sensei?"

"You'd better have finished your homework or else Komoe's going to get mad at you."

"O-oh, right."

"Hmph, you forgot, didn't you. Hurry up and finish it before school starts. Oh, by the way. I'm your gym teacher for this school year. Prepare yourself."

Touma gulped. "A-ah, okay then. See you at school!" He promptly ran off, Index trailing after him.

"I wonder what your gym classes are like, Aiho." Izumi had stretched out on an empty couch, smirking at the Anti-Skill teacher.

"Everyone comes out too exhausted to complain."

"Hm? Sounds like an interesting class."

"Aiho is always pushing her students to the limit, but she's a great teacher. Are there any teacher requests, by the way?"

"I knew I was forgetting something. There's an opening at my school for second-year science. They still haven't found any actual teachers who'd fill the position, but I put your name in and they want an interview tomorrow."

"Ah, thanks Aiho. Oh, so this means Accelerator and Shizuka are going to have to keep an eye on Last Order when school starts."

"Babysitting the brat again? I'll pass."

"'MISAKA can take care of herself,' argues MISAKA as MISAKA takes Accelerator's side for once."

"Forget school; the Romans are sending the declaration of war in 13 days, 3 days after school starts. You guys seriously want to start school and then end up closing for the war?" Izumi eyed Yomikawa incredulously.

"The public is unaware yet. Cancelling school after 3 days isn't a good idea, so I'm hoping that there's going to be an announcement in the next couple days."

"If there isn't, good luck then."

"With what?!"

"Nothing," Izumi said innocently as possible.

"Ah, forget it. I'm getting a headache over this. Kikyou, come with me. There's some stuff about my school you should know about and information on the curriculum."

The two women left the room, leaving Accelerator, Arin and Last Order staring at each other. Izumi was facing the back of the couch, apparently sleeping already.

"Oi, Izumi-"

"He can't hear you," Arin interrupted.

"I don't see anything that blocks hearing."

"He put up an invisible sound barrier. Probably trying to ignore all of the chatter. I can tell you how to dispel it, but I doubt he'll be happy."

"Tch, now what do I do? It's only 7:10; I'm not going to sleep."

"Actually, you should. The spell that restored your energy will fade soon. In reality, your body is already exhausted beyond limit. You have to rest in order to naturally replenish your energy."

"Fine, but I don't sleep that easily."

"Oh, I have two choices for you."

"What?"

"Either I can remove the effects of the healing spell now, or I cast a sleep spell on you."

"I'd rather you remove the effects. This isn't going to reopen any old wounds, right?"

"No." Arin clasped her hands together, singing a wordless melody. A golden light emanated from her body, flying towards Accelerator.

All of a sudden, he felt a heavy exhaustion settle over him, and he felt sleep tugging at his consciousness, sending him to oblivion. The last scene he saw was the two girls leaning over him, saying good night. Belatedly, he remembered he forgot to ask Arin to take care of Last Order.

 _3:00 AM in the morning_

Accelerator bolted straight awake, sitting up so suddenly his muscles protested. He had subconsciously sensed an abnormal heaviness in the air that forced him awake. On the other couch, Izumi groaned and stirred, opening one eye to look at Accelerator. He was sprawled out on the couch, sleeping on his front in a mass of black cloth.

"It's too early to be waking up, Accelerator," he grumbled, closing the eye again.

"Izumi, don't you sense the heaviness in the air?" Accelerator shifted into a sitting position on the couch, setting his feet on the ground.

Shaking himself awake, Izumi sat up, tilting his head. His indigo eyes narrowed to slits. "The seals are fading."

"Does that mean-"

"That Shizuka's waking up? Yes and no."

"Give me a straight answer."

"Yes, since she had risen from the coma-like sleep. No, because there's still a chance that her body will just stay asleep until the morning."

"You do remember what happened last night, didn't you? I woke up in the middle of the night."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Izumi waved his hand dismissively. "It's different for everybody. Still, we should check on her."

The duo moved noiselessly through the living room and into the hallway, stopping at Accelerator's bedroom. Opening the door without a sound, Izumi pushed it open just wide enough for a person to step through, and motioned Accelerator in, entering after the esper.

Just as Izumi said, the magic seals had faded, leaving behind clean, whole walls, ceiling and floor with no traces of knife marks. The last magic circle that still existed was on the wall closest to Shizuka, and the marks were so faint Accelerator could barely make them out.

Suddenly, the marks faded completely, and Shizuka started to stir. Opening her sapphire eyes slowly for the first time in four days, she immediately noticed Accelerator and Izumi hovering over her.

"Accelerator?"

"About time you woke up, Shizuka. It's been 4 days." Accelerator had a sleepy scowl on his face, but Shizuka knew he was slightly relieved she woke up. She turned to Izumi, blinking as some memories surfaced.

"You are...Izumi?"

"Long time no see, Shizuka. You've grown a lot." Izumi's voice sounded slightly warmer than the cold tone he usually used. "You look more and more like Hikaru these days."

"My...mother?"

Izumi nodded. "Anyways, do you intend on falling back asleep?"

"No, not really." Slowly sitting up, Shizuka winced as stiff muscles protested after days of not moving. "What time is it?"

"3:08 AM."

"Middle of the night? When did you wake up, Accelerator?"

"Last night around 2 or 3."

"I see."

"Well, considering you don't plan on sleeping any time soon, we're going to the roof. Accelerator, you should call Arin."

"Fine."

"Who's Arin?" Shizuka asked curiously.

"That would be me," replied Arin as she appeared out of thin air.

Shizuka started in surprise. "You're...not human."

"Nope," Arin replied in a sing-song voice. "I'm the human form of a grimoire Accelerator currently possesses. By the way Accelerator, Last Order's completely fine." Accelerator gave her a nod.

"Accelerator, you have a grimoire?"

"It was my father's." Accelerator held up his right arm, displaying the silver chain and book.

"That's so cool! Can I take a look?"

Accelerator glanced at Arin questioningly. She nodded. Accelerator moved his right arm over to Shizuka, dangling the book in front of her. Shizuka gave Accelerator a quizzical look.

"Can't you remove the grimoire or something?"

"Apparently no."

Shizuka studied the book cover, tracing her right index finger along the intricate patterns. "I can sense extremely great power, but I don't know what it can be used for. I won't open it."

"Smart move. And the answer to your unsaid question is to destroy some stuff, of course." Arin had a smirk on her child's face.

Izumi interrupted just then. "We should continue this conversation later. I don't want to wake up anyone else at this ungodly hour."

"You were awake at said ungodly hour last night without complaining," Accelerator replied as innocently he could. "Don't tell me you suddenly disliked the late night, which shouldn't be possible."

Sensing a brewing argument, Shizuka raised her hands for silence. "You two can continue the argument later for same reasons as previously stated. Now get out of the room, I have to change. I'll join you guys in a minute."

Without a word the two guys went out of the room. Arin snickered. "They certainly have enough sense and wits about them. Well, I'll join them as well. Hurry up. I think Izumi has something important to tell you two." She promptly disappeared.  
Getting out of the bed, Shizuka reached into the bag of clothes she had picked out from her room. She changed into a plain ivory blue tank top and denim shorts, tying a thin cardigan around her waist.

Slipping noiselessly through the crack in the door, she found Izumi and Accelerator staring at each other. Arin was standing beside Accelerator, no expression on her face.

"Sorry to interrupt the stare-fest, but did you guys say something about heading up to the roof?"

"Oh, right. Let's go, Accelerator."

Shizuka quietly followed the two out of the apartment and onto the roof, where Arin was already waiting for them. Izumi stopped them once they were in the middle.

"What do you two think about going to a place where we can clearly see some stars and the moon?"

"Magic?"

"Of course. I want to teach you two some history. Well, you three stay in the centre. I'll be done in a few minutes."

Izumi walked away, leaving Accelerator, Shizuka and Arin in the middle of the roof. Arin broke the silence first. "If you don't mind, Accelerator, I'm going to watch Izumi."

"Suit yourself." Accelerator watched Arin walk off to wherever Izumi was.

Shizuka waved a hand in front of his face. "Can I ask you a few questions?"

"Yeah, sure."

"What happened to you? For some reason, I can sense a whole lot more power coming from you than before."

"Izumi sealed away my hidden magic potential, which was unleashed when the seal broke. I also got my full calculating capability back. I don't need the choker anymore."

"Oh. What happened when I was asleep?"

"Well, I was asleep for 3 days, so I can only tell you what happened yesterday."

"Okay."

"Well, I woke up around the same time as you last night. Izumi was checking on us. When I woke up, the magic in my body and my esper ability started clashing and nearly killed me, but he prevented that from happening by putting a binding spell on my magic."

"So you nearly died again."

"I should be getting used to it. After that, we went out onto the roof and Izumi started my training, which, by the way, is actually really brutal."

"What kind of training?"

"Hand-to-hand combat. Also, he taught me how to use my ability to deflect magic."

"So you can fight regular magicians now?"

"Yeah. Actually, I did fight one yesterday." He proceeded to explain everything that had happened during the fight, and the later interrogation. He didn't leave out one detail.

Shizuka stared at him in what looked like awe. "You're really amazing, you know that?"

"Tch, shut up."

"Whatever. Looks like plenty of stuff happened in the one day you were awake."

"Yeah. Also, we met Aleister Crowley."

Shizuka's jaw dropped. "The rumoured General Superintendent of Academy City?"

"Yeah. He told us that we got 13 days before the Romans send the declaration of war, and then attack."

"Well, that's plenty of time to train, right?"

"Should be." Izumi's familiar voice cut through the air. "I'm done with the magic circle. Just stay still. We'll be off soon." He started chanting in a language that sounded like Greek, and the surrounding area around them started to glow a light green colour. The light became blindingly bright, and the trio felt themselves tumbling into a dark void.

 _Somewhere in Japan_

Accelerator found himself, Shizuka and Izumi standing in a grassy meadow. Up above them, thousands of stars twinkled brightly, and a large half moon shone.

"Whoa," Shizuka gasped. "Where are we?"

"Actually, I have no idea." Izumi glanced around him, looking slightly bemused. "I didn't really specify much in the teleportation spell."

"So what did you specify?" Accelerator stuck his hands in his pockets, giving Izumi a quizzical look.

"Hmm, around 100 kilometres away from Academy City, an open, abandoned area, and no artificial lights. Looks like we got teleported here. Anyways, there's some history I should be teaching you guys. Well, mainly Shizuka."

"Then why was I brought along?"

"Learning some stuff is good for you. Not to mention knowledge is power."

"Tch, whatever. What are you going to tell us?"

"The ancient power of Shizuka's bloodline. Specifically, the Tsukiko bloodline."

"What kind of power is there in my bloodline?" Shizuka asked curiously.

"Do you know what your last name means?"

"The kanji meaning is 'Child of the Moon'."

"Correct. Millennia ago, your ancestors were the first people to use the moon as a source of magic. It was a very powerful source, and they were able to use many different kinds of magic unknown to the world back then. It became so that the moon was literally their source of power. If they used up all their magic and they couldn't cast any more spells, all they needed to do was to stand under a beam of moonlight and their magic would recharge immediately. Since your family is a direct descendant of that bloodline, you have inherited all the attributes of the magic." Glancing at Accelerator's open mouth, obviously going to ask a question, Izumi held up a hand to stop him. "If you're saying that science states that moonlight is only reflected sunlight, it does have different properties in magic."

"That's really interesting. So, what kind of magic can I use?"

"I can answer that." Arin appeared out of nowhere, blue dress fluttering with the slightest movement.

Izumi raised an eyebrow, but gestured for her to go on.

Arin snapped her fingers, and the Moonlight Codex appeared on Accelerator's arm. The chain tugged itself free from his arm and flew to her hands, where she opened it, ignoring Accelerator's glare at her. "In the second section of the Moonlight Codex, it talks about the hidden magic of the priests of Diana."

"Diana?"

"Roman goddess of the moon. The history is very sketchy, since a lot of records were lost, but it's believed that your ancestors were priests of Diana who then travelled to Japan."

"That's a long journey."

"Yeah, but they picked up plenty more information about magic along the way. Anyways, I'm giving you access to the Moonlight Codex along with Accelerator. Read the second section. However, he's the only one who can keep it." Snapping the book shut, she allowed it to float back to Accelerator, where it automatically reattached itself to his right arm. He scowled at her.

"Next time you need the damn book, give me a warning before you yank my arm off."

"Wait a second, why did Nii-san put a section like that in the Moonlight Codex?"

"He got the information from Chihiro. He knew that the information would be useful someday. That information is also the main reason for the title of the Moonlight Codex."

"I see."

"So why did we need this lesson out here and not Academy City?"

"All the light pollution makes it hard to see the night sky clearly, or so Izumi says. Not to mention, there's a magic ritual Shizuka has to go through."

"What kind of magic ritual?" Shizuka asked weakly.

"Oh, don't freak. It isn't high-level magic that'll do anything drastic to your body. It's somewhat like an initiation to accept the full power of the Tsukiko bloodline." Arin flipped some pages in the grimoire, and then stopped in the middle. "Here it is: Chapter 13, section 7. The ritual of blood, designed as an acceptance of the family heritage and initiation."

"What is it with magic and blood?" Accelerator looked slightly confused and exasperated.

"Blood is the fluid of life. Of course it holds great power. How do you think I got the teleportation spell done so quickly? Regular teleportation spells require magic circles that take at least half an hour to make. Teleportation spells made with blood have a much simpler design." Izumi held up his right wrist, displaying a newly healed scar.

Shizuka cringed. "How much blood?"

"Not too much. I was watching the entire thing. Besides, Accelerator also had to give up some blood in order to gain full access to the Moonlight Codex."  
"You too, Accelerator?"

"It wasn't my choice." He grumbled. "Arin had already cut me before I could do anything."

"Fine." Shizuka extended her hand to Arin. Arin took it, but hesitated. Shizuka glanced at her questioningly.

"What?"

"There will be some physical side effects. I forgot to tell you."

"Like?" Shizuka asked nervously.  
"Your hair will get some silver streaks and you'll develop crescent pupils, like mine."

"I didn't see anything like that in the picture of my father."

"That's because scientific cameras can't pick up some magical appearances."

"Well, that's not so bad."

"Let us continue then. Stay still. This ritual is supposed to be done by an actual priest or member of your family, but since I possess power similar to yours, I can act as a substitute."

Producing the knife she had used on Accelerator, Arin turned Shizuka's hand to the back and traced out a crescent cut, which began bleeding quickly.

"Raise your hand so your blood comes in contact with the moonlight," Arin instructed Shizuka. As Shizuka did so, the surrounding area was instantly lit up with bright silver light.

Arin quickly traced a magic circle with the blood on the back of Shizuka's hand, chanting in an ancient language. As she chanted, Shizuka literally felt more power surging into her body.

The glow died down gradually after Arin stopped chanting, revealing a somewhat changed Shizuka. Her blue hair had silver streaks, and her eyes looked like that of Arin's. Izumi and Accelerator stared at the change.

Shizuka waved a hand in front of Accelerator, causing him to blink. "Wake up. That wasn't too shocking, was it?"

"Can't expect me to not stare at a magic ritual I've never seen before. Also, you have a scar."

Quickly looking at the place she got cut, Shizuka noticed the crescent moon shaped scar, which was a silver colour. She shrugged.

"Well, that's all for now, I think. Izumi, should we be heading back?" Arin asked, tapping her foot.

"What do you two think?" Izumi asked Accelerator and Shizuka. "It's only 4:35. And no, I'm not doing any early morning training, Accelerator."

"Dawn's already here. We should leave." Shizuka got up, pacing around.

"True. Still, what can we do for 4 hours or something?" Choosing not to get up, Accelerator remained lying on the ground.

"I'm going back to sleep. You two, I don't care."

"Alright then."

"Fine with me."

"I'll meet you guys back in Academy City." Arin disappeared immediately into thin air.

Getting up, Izumi stretched and studied the night sky, apparently confirming some facts. "You two, stay in the middle like you did last time."

Izumi walked off again. Accelerator remained lying on the ground, staring at the sky. Shizuka sat back down beside him, following his gaze at the slowly dimming stars.

"Still see any constellations?"

"No, not really."

"When I got my memories back, I remembered a whole lot more about what I was taught about magic. If you have the right timing, you can use the constellations in a magic circle for really powerful magic."

"Huh, interesting."

"Remember anything from the time when we were younger?".

"Yeah. For some reason, I don't have any lasting memories of my parents." He really didn't, except for the memories Michael had shown him, and he neglected to tell her that.

"Really?" Shizuka asked in surprise.

"Yeah."

"That's due to the fact that your parents died when you were 4 years old. I'd be surprised if you have any clear memory of them." Izumi walked up to them. "Stand up. I modified the spell this time so we'd be directly transported to Aiho's apartment, but it's going to be one hell of a ride."

"So wouldn't it be better if we sat down?"

"When using teleportation spells, you should always be standing. That's actually a better option."

"You're making no sense, but fine." Accelerator got up and stood beside Shizuka.

Slashing his hand through the air, Izumi muttered a spell and they were instantly engulfed in darkness. The shrieking of wind reached their ears, blowing faster and faster. The area around them started shaking violently, but somehow, the trio managed to hold their ground. After at least a minute of this, the wind died down and the ground stopped shaking. The darkness lifted for the trio to find themselves in the living room of Yomikawa's apartment.

Shizuka immediately collapsed on the nearby couch, Accelerator following her lead a second later. "Don't. Ever. Do. That. Ever. Again," she groaned.

"You guys should be glad it was only a hundred kilometres. Believe me, if you wanted to travel to countries on opposite sides of each other, the shaking would be a whole lot more violent." Izumi lay down on the other couch, wrapping his black cloak around him. "I'm going back to sleep. Don't bother me."

"Aaaaaaand cue sound barrier spell." Arin appeared in the living room, glancing knowingly at the now-silent Izumi. "He's using the same sound barrier spell he used earlier. You guys better find some kind of way to amuse yourselves."

"I need some time to recover. What about you, Accelerator?"

"Don't know. Maybe I'll go on the roof." Going into the kitchen, he grabbed a can of coffee Yoshikawa had bought, opening it and drinking most of the contents in one swig. Getting another can, he tossed it to Shizuka. She caught it and nodded in thanks.

"Guess I'll join you. I want to watch the sun rise."

"Suit yourself."

"Looks like I'm not needed for now. Later." Arin disappeared.

Finishing the coffee in silence, Accelerator threw the can into the bin and headed towards the door.

"Hey, wait for me!"

"Bring the coffee to the roof if you don't finish. Not my fault you drink super slowly." He walked out of the door, Shizuka hurrying after him.

 _On the roof_

The sun had already started rising when the two reached the roof, painting splashes of pink and golden light across the sky.

"Sunrise gives me a feeling of déjà vu," Shizuka commented, still sipping the coffee.

"How come?" Accelerator was lying on the roof, hands folded behind his head.

"Remember when you visited me in the hospital? It was sunrise when you left."

"Huh, true. I never noticed."

"Doesn't seem like you really notice your surroundings."

"Not all the time."

"I know. Oh, I still have one thing I want to ask you."

"What?"

"Do you think the Science side will win the war?"

There was silence for at least 5 minutes. Accelerator did not say a word, nor did he give any indication that he heard the question. After a while, he spoke.

"We have to win. There's no opinion about that. If we don't win, the world will be destroyed. You know I'm a host for the archangel Michael, right?" Shizuka nodded silently. "He's there to fight the fallen archangel Lucifer, who's the one behind the entire war in the first place."

"How?"

"Lucifer possessed the strongest magician in the Roman Catholic Church. Acting under the hatred that was already there for the Science side, he declared war, but in reality, he plans on destroying the entire world."

Shizuka gasped in horror. "So you're telling me you're going to be fighting a super powerful magician under the possession of a super powerful fallen archangel?"

"In simple terms, yes. I already know there's a chance I won't live. Still, I won't go down without a fight."

"You'd better not die. You know how Last Order will react."

"I know, I know. Surprisingly, you aren't overreacting like I thought you would."

"You do not know how hard it is to contain my feelings right now."

"True."

They sat in silence after that, watching the sun emerge fully from the horizon, shining warm and bright light on everything its rays touched.

Accelerator got up abruptly, stretching. "Want to walk around Academy City? This could help with your sense of direction later."

"Sure, thanks." In response, Accelerator casually walked to the edge of the roof and jumped down, causing Shizuka to shriek in surprise. "What are you doing?!" She yelled, running to the edge.

Accelerator calmly floated up to her, 2 funnels of wind behind him acting as wings. "I'm not going to bother going down the regular way. Come on, just use your powers."

"Give me a warning first," grumbled Shizuka as she created a pocket of air pressure under her, flying down to the ground effortlessly. She landed with perfect balance. "It's getting easier to control air," she commented, tossing the coffee can into a nearby garbage bin.

Accelerator landed neatly beside her, the wind funnels disappearing. "Probably due to the majority of your magic coming back. Now, what do you know about Academy City's layout?"

"Not much. I don't remember visiting a lot of places from my childhood memories, and I didn't see much when I escaped from the lab."

"I'll admit I don't really explore the city. However, I do know where most of the important places are." He set off walking, Shizuka beside him. In the early morning, not a lot of people were out, so no one gave them second glances.

Heading towards the centre of the city, Accelerator pointed out some schools and some areas where they had seen a week ago. They stopped at the bottom of the Windowless Building.

"Huh, I didn't know I'd end up here," Accelerator mused.

"What is this place?" Shizuka asked.

"The Windowless Building. Aleister Crowley is up there. We should continue walking. Not a good place."

Judging by the tone of his voice, Shizuka decided not to say anything and quickly followed him. Continuing along the public areas, they aimlessly explored the place. Finally, after half an hour, they decided to head back. Accelerator led her into an alleyway, where he signaled for her to be quiet.

She sent a telepathic message. _Where are we?_

 _A shortcut,_ he sent back. _It's shorter than the actual route back to the apartment, but gang groups always hang around this place._

 _Shouldn't they be scared of you?_

 _I did get shot, remember that._

 _True._

After a few minutes of walking, they heard multiple voices and footsteps heading their way. Shizuka gave Accelerator a matter-of-fact look. He scowled back at her and swore under his breath. Shizuka sent a telepathic message.

 _Now what?_

 _Fight, obviously. Haven't had a good one against pathetic gang groups in a while._ He had his trademark maniacal smirk on his face.

Shizuka groaned, but readied herself just in case. Half a minute later, they came across a large group of extremely shifty looking men, looking prepared for a fight.

"So you're the intruders that decided to come here." One man, looking like the leader, stepped forward, growling.

Accelerator smiled, his smile growing crazier by the second. "I just wonder how you guys knew we were coming. Didn't know a Skill-Out group would come greet us, though."

The man snarled. "You're always confusing us with Skill-Out. We're not them."

"Oh? Then who are you guys? More pathetic level 0s? And do you guys know who I am?"

"You're Accelerator, obviously. And no, we're level 4s. How do you think we sensed your presence? We have a clairvoyant esper here."

"And you guys know what happens when you mess with the strongest level 5?"

The man snorted. "Please. Considering you got shot in the head and lost most of your ability, multiple abilities and numbers will eventually beat you. And your little blue-haired girlfriend as well."

"She's not my girlfriend. And seriously, you don't even know her ability. And I'll tell you just what's going to happen: you guys are going to get your asses handed to you guys." As he spoke, he lunged forward at nearly the speed of sound, grabbing the man by the collar and throwing him with inhuman strength at the group. They toppled over like bowling pins. Some that had avoided the collision started to use their powers against Accelerator and Shizuka, which ranged from fireballs to earthquakes to superspeed.

Needless to say, the fireballs were immediately extinguished by Shizuka with a wave of her hand, while she also stopped the earthquake. Meanwhile, Accelerator was fighting multiple level 4s, using the combat skills Izumi had taught him go physically beat up the level 4s. He laughed.

"You guys are seriously pathetic. I don't even need my powers and you guys are getting beat up." He deflected punches and kicks while delivering his own with devastating power.

On the other hand, the level 4s attacking Shizuka couldn't even get close to her. Some she sent flying with blasts of fire and ice, while others she knocked unconscious with mental force.

After around five minutes of fighting, Accelerator noted that the numbers weren't really decreasing. Controlling the wind vectors to blast all the attackers away from him, he took a quick breather and glanced at Shizuka, surprised when her telepathic voice reached his head.

 _I thought you said you enjoyed beating up gang groups. Is this what you had in mind?_ Even with a mental voice, the sarcasm was so thick it could be cut with a knife.

 _It's getting boring._

 _Thought so. I have an idea to stop them all at once._

 _What?_

 _You'll see. When you see me snap my fingers, fly as high up as you can. I'll rejoin you later._

 _Fine._

Their telepathic conversation was interrupted when the gang group recovered, one half attacking Shizuka and the other half attacking Accelerator again.

Keeping an eye out for Shizuka's signal, Accelerator finally decided to use his power to fight and concentrate on watching for the right time. A couple seconds later, Accelerator saw Shizuka tap one foot on the ground and send a strong shockwave through the ground, causing many to lose their balance, but he kept his footing. She then brought her fingers together to snap, and Accelerator shot high up in the air.

To his surprise, all the men collapsed, clutching at their throats. He felt her presence beside him as she floated up to rejoin him. Without turning his head, he asked a question.

"What did you do?"

"When you apply the ability of controlling air to science, you can control the different elements in the air. I just took away the oxygen in the air, knocking them unconscious."

"Remind me to not piss you off ever."

"You already did, but I'm giving you a free pass for now. Oh look, I think we have a guest."

Turning his head to one side, Accelerator saw one man floating up to him, a look of rage on his face. Ignoring Accelerator, he lunged at Shizuka, hands outstretched.

"What the hell did you do to them, you bitch?!"

Flying to one side easily, Shizuka replied with no emotion in her voice. "Cut off the oxygen supply. They're still alive. I'm surprised that you were able to still use your ability though. What is it? Levitation?"

"Forget my ability; you're going to pay-ACK!" The man was abruptly cut off as Accelerator sent a powerful kick to the man's midsection, sending him plummeting down to the ground.

"Pathetic," Accelerator snorted. "I'm surprised you didn't attack him immediately, Shizuka."

"I was going to, and then you just came in out of nowhere."

"Tch, whatever. Let's head back."  
"Are you planning on flying back?"

"Yup." Accelerator flew at a slow pace back to the apartment in a reclining position, hands behind his head. "Huh, never knew this way of transportation would be that relaxing. I should do this more often."

Shizuka floated beside him in a sitting position, her arms crossed. "Next time, don't stick to the alleyways. Fighting gang groups aren't worth it."

"You still have no idea what I've been doing these years, haven't you?"

"Nope, but I have an idea. I'm guessing after you got shot, you were busy beating up gang groups and fighting people."

"Partially true."

"Knew it."

"Not like it matters. Oh finally, we're here."

They landed on the roof, walking back down to the apartment.

 _Outside the apartment_

Yomikawa and Yoshikawa were just stepping out, Yomikawa dressed in her usual green tracksuit and Yoshikawa in her regular outfit and lab coat.

Yomikawa was the first to see the two walking back to the apartment. "Where did you go, Accelerator? Oh, and hello, Shizuka. Woke up last night?"

Shizuka smiled at the two women while Accelerator replied for both of them. "We went onto the roof for a while and then took a walk around."

"Oh, I see. Izumi's still sleeping on the couch, and Last Order's still in your room, Shizuka, so try not to wake them up. Anyways, what happened to you? You look different."

"Magic stuff." She saw looks of understanding dawn on the women's faces. She decided to change the subject. "Hey, where are you guys going?"

"Oh, I got a job interview for Kikyou as a teacher at my school. We're heading over there now."

"Wow, congratulations Yoshikawa!" Shizuka smiled with delight.

"Ah, thank you."

"Anyways, we should go or else we'll be late. Don't mess the place up, Accelerator."

"Tch, you make it sound like I'm totally irresponsible," grumbled Accelerator.

"Just a reminder. See you two later." The women waved and walked off, leaving Accelerator and Shizuka to enter the apartment.

Shizuka cautiously opened the door, putting her finger to her lips for Accelerator to stay quiet. Rolling his eyes, he went in the door without making a sound, removing his shoes and heading for the couch Izumi was sleeping on. True to Yomikawa's word, Izumi was still sprawled out on the couch. His messy black hair covered his eyes, making it hard to see the closed eyelids. His chest rose and fell rhythmically, indicating that he was indeed asleep.

Shizuka caught Accelerator's attention, gesturing in the general direction of where Last Order's room was. "I'm going to check on Last Order. Want to join me?"

He nodded, following her to her actual bedroom. Quietly pushing open the door, Shizuka poked her head inside.

Last Order was sleeping in the middle of the bed, her body parallel to the floor. One half of the blanket covered her body and the other half hung over the edge. The pillow was on the floor. To sum it up, everything was askew.

Shizuka gaped at the scene, while Accelerator was snickering quietly. "I bet you never knew the brat tossed and turned this much."

"Nope."

"The night I rescued you, she was kicking me in her sleep. I had to get out for a while."

"So she kicked you hard enough for you to wake up?" Shizuka asked incredulously.

"Yeah. She snuck onto my bed when I was asleep."

"Well, I'm not going to let her keep on sleeping like that. Help me out."

"What are you going to do? Try to move her without waking her up? She's a really light sleeper in the mornings."

As if to prove his point, Last Order suddenly started to shift around, murmuring unintelligible words. Both teenagers froze, none daring to make a move or even breathe. To their relief, Last Order stilled again, her breathing steady again.

Shizuka sent a telepathic message.

 _Can you lift her with air or something?_

 _And just what are you going to do?_ He shot back.

 _Make the bed._

 _Tch, I can't believe you want to do this. The brat's sleeping fine. She's always like this._

 _Come on, just this once. You owe me._

 _No I don't._

 _Shut up, let's do this already._

 _Tch, fine._

Accelerator gently lifted Last Order up with a cushion of air, making sure not to move her as much as possible. Shizuka quickly put the blanket and pillow back in place, motioning for Accelerator to softly set down Last Order. He did so, and Shizuka tucked the blanket around Last Order. They quickly exited the room, where Accelerator promptly fell against the wall, leaning against it.

"I don't know what goes on in your mind half the time," he grumbled. "That was completely unnecessary."

"Come on, if she did any more tossing and turning, she'd fall off the bed."

"And why is that my concern?"

"I give up."

Accelerator smirked. "And the argument goes in my favour."

"Shut up. Anyways, what time is it?"

"8:07. Izumi might be up."

"No he isn't," Arin said in a sing-song voice, appearing out of nowhere. Shizuka stifled a shriek of surprise.

"Stop scaring me, Arin!"

"Oops, sorry." Arin did not sound apologetic at all. "To reiterate: Izumi is still sleeping. I'm surprised. He probably spent too much energy yesterday. He's good at hiding it."

"Let's leave him and Last Order then. So what can we do?"

"Study the Moonlight Codex, of course. Both of you should be learning some spells. And to be honest, some take a long time to learn. It will prove essential in the war, so start studying!" Arin snapped her fingers, and the book appeared on Accelerator's arm again, yanking itself rather roughly off his arm.

Fighting down a snarl of irritation, Accelerator snatched the book with his other hand. "Next time, don't yank off my damn arm."

"Oops, was that too hard? Just trying to make a point. Summon me if you need any help. I suggest going to your room to study, Accelerator."

"Tch, whatever." However, when Arin disappeared, he stalked off to his room, Shizuka following him.

Both of them sat on the ground, leaning their backs on Accelerator's bed. Accelerator warily placed his hand on the cover and slowly opened the book to the first page. Nothing happened, to his relief.

"I seriously hope this thing won't explode on us. Handling this thing makes me feel like I'm handling a hydrogen bomb. I know the power in this thing is enough for regular people to spontaneously combust if they even hold it."

"Come on, Arin said she already accepted you as a keeper of the grimoire. It'd probably explode on other people, but I don't think it should on us."

Without a word Accelerator kept on flipping until he reached something that looked like a table of contents. Scanning the words, he immediately recognized them as Latin. "Oi, Arin said nothing about the entire book being in Latin."

"Whaaaaat? Let me see." Shizuka leaned over, silver-streaked hair almost brushing the book. "Well, at least this gives us a chance to practice Latin."

"You can read it?" Accelerator glanced at her incredulously.

"Yeah. I think it was something to do with the ritual Arin did on me. How about you?"

"Most likely the same thing. Well then, which section looks interesting?" Poring over the book, he studied the table of contents. "Chapters 1 and 2, defense and barrier spells. Chapter 3, healing spells. Chapters 4 to 6, elemental and offense spells. Chapters 7 to 14, the Priests of Diana bloodline history and spells used. That's for you, then. Chapter 15 to 17, angels of Heaven and Awakening. Better check that later. Chapter 18 to 21, forbidden magic. This book seems very interesting."

"Forbidden magic, huh? I wonder just what's in there."

"Probably stuff that was outlawed in the world of magic a long time ago. I'll read that later."

"There's so many chapters for stuff about my bloodline," Shizuka commented.

"In reality, the chapters for that aren't that long. So, which one should we be starting with?"

"Elemental and offense spells, to start off. We can look at the more dangerous spells later."

"Good point. Izumi said he was going to teach me offense spells anyways. As for you, elemental spells should help with your element control."

"Smart guy. Although, what use is there for elemental spells for me? When I use that power, it's instinctive, like espers, but it's actually magic power. It's weird."  
"Whatever; I'm looking at that section first." Flipping to the right page, he started reading. "Combat spells: spells to directly or indirectly attack or injure an opponent in battle, or to enhance the body and physical skills. Looks like this section is for my supposed battle expertise." Flipping to the next page, his eyes widened in surprise. "What the hell is this?!"

Shizuka looked at the page. "Each page has one or two spells, incantations or cantrips. There's a description of what it does, and the words needed to cast it. Hope you have a good memory."

"I'm not the first-ranked level 5 esper for just my ability. How do you even know this stuff?"

"Don't know. The knowledge just popped into my head."

"Whatever. I'm only going to memorize the ones that are actually useful."

"Suit yourself. Although it's better to be safe than to be sorry."

Accelerator ignored her, studying the page intently. His eyes scanned each line, memorizing words and descriptions. After he was done one page, he moved his eyes to the next page, not even turning his head. He flipped pages once every while, until he finished the section. "Okay, I got everything in the section. You can have the book for now."

Shizuka gaped at him. "That took only three minutes!"

"Told you my ability wasn't the only thing that made me first-ranked."

"I get it. Fine then. I'm going to study the elemental section and the chapters on my bloodline."

"Take your time. I'm going to go through the spells I just learned in my mind."

"Have fun." Shizuka's voice had a tinge of sarcasm.

Closing his eyes, Accelerator recalled the first page of spells he had read about. There was a very brief spell for invisibility, and an anti-detection spell.

 _Hm, the invisibility spell combined with the anti-detection spell would give opponents a nice surprise. Maybe that's why my father put then on the same page. I wonder if Izumi uses these spells._

He suddenly heard Arin's voice in his mind. _You're correct, you know. Tsukasa wrote all the spells in me with a specific order or combination. However, it takes some concentration and time if you want to use both at once._

He sent a mental thanks. Arin giggled.

 _Hope_ _you learn everything that you need for the war. Tsukasa wrote the Moonlight Codex solely for your use and Shizuka's use in the war._

With that, he felt her presence leave his mind. Shaking his head ruefully, he went back to running through spells in his head.

 _MAJOR TIME SKIP- ONE WEEK LATER-5 DAYS BEFORE THE WAR_

After one week of training, Accelerator and Shizuka had learned a large majority of spells from the Moonlight Codex. Izumi had done additional training on both of them, teaching them how to perfectly blend in with shadows and attack with easy grace.

Izumi had commented that their magic power had increased substantially, but still continued to push them. Despite all that, both teens still found time to spend with Last Order, trying not to make her feel left out.

One day ago, a public announcement had been issued, saying that a threat of war was sent and the schools would be closed down until further notice. Yoshikawa and Yomikawa seemed mildly annoyed, but they had no complaints, especially since Yoshikawa was still reveling in her success of getting the science teacher job at A Certain High School.

Accelerator had received training from Michael as well at night when he was sleeping. Michael had trained his mental power and his mind, allowing him to concentrate better. He had also given Accelerator skills with a sword, as the archangel claimed that he would need it when fighting Lucifer. Accelerator had made no comment when a silver-like metal sword sheathed in a pure white scabbard appeared on his bed the day after Michael had told him, choosing to just carry the sword around attached to his jeans.

Izumi, Shizuka and Last Order had gaped at him on the first day, but they learned to ignore the long blade. It took a little while for Yoshikawa and Yomikawa to get used to it, but they tolerated it under the promise that Accelerator would not draw the sword in the apartment.

Five days before the war, Izumi called Accelerator and Shizuka to the roof. There, he sat with them, staring at them calculatingly.

"What's with the stare, Izumi?" Accelerator asked, a bored look settling over his face. "Don't tell me we're training out minds again."

"Hmm, no. I have a question for you two."

"And you dragged us up to the roof out of the others' earshot. Why is that?"

"No reason. However, it's come to my mind we will need additional help during the war. 4 against eight aren't very good odds."

Accelerator and Shizuka exchanged bemused glances. Noticing the looks, Izumi sighed.  
"I'm sure you guys can beat up at least three magicians without backing down. Plus there's Imagine Breaker, and I plan on joining the fray as well. If Stiyl and Kanzaki are still in the city, I'll ask them to fight as well. But if the information we got from Nathalia is right, we'll have a lot more trouble on our hands."

"Like?"

"There are at least three necromancers who will join the battle, one alchemist, two combat magicians almost on the same level as me, one very powerful elementalist, and one simulcrist. These are the eight magicians who we are up against. They make up the Roman Catholic Church's elite force of magicians, just a little bit below the magicians of God's Right Seat."

"Alchemist?" Accelerator asked at the same time as Shizuka asked, "Simulcrist?"

"Alchemists are magicians who can change their thoughts to reality. I think Imagine Breaker fought one before. Simulcrists are magicians who make artificial beings out of clay or other materials and bring them to life. Very annoying. And I suppose you guys know the other kinds of magicians?"

"Necromancers reanimate dead bodies, right?"

"Correct, Shizuka. There are three powerful ones, so working together, they may be able to call up long dead corpses of magicians. On his own, one necromancer can call up an entire graveyard of dead people. They're easy to beat up, but sheer numbers can overwhelm you."

"So what was your original question?" Accelerator didn't look too overwhelmed by the power Izumi had described.

"How well do both of you know the other six Level Fives?"

Accelerator's eyes widened and he stared accusingly at Izumi. "No way...don't tell me..."

"Yes, I am." Izumi's expression didn't change one bit. Shizuka just stared at Accelerator, confused.

"We seriously have to get help from the other Level Fives?!"


	14. The Level 5s Get Messages

**Hope you enjoy! Okay, I know Sogiita doesn't go to Nagatenjouki, but it was the only high school I could think of in TAMNI.**

"You've got to be kidding me! There is no way in hell I'll work with any of the other six!" Accelerator's expression had turned from bored to angry and annoyed in a matter of seconds.

"I don't even know them!" Shizuka exclaimed.

Izumi sighed and rubbed the sides of his head. "We need help from the Science side. This is an opportunity to prove science and magic can work together. Besides, the necromancers will most likely call up a large army of undead to ravage the city while we're busy with individual battles. We need powerful espers to take care of the undead army. Not to mention the simulcrist will also have some of his pets along as well. Besides, our current force is only six people. There are eight magicians and an indefinite number of undead. We need help."

"Tch, fine. Just saying, it's extremely hard to locate most of the Level Fives."

"And that's where I come in." Arin appeared beside Izumi, a few sheets of paper in her hands. "Izumi had me do a little project while you guys were training. I've figured out all the locations of the Level Fives, except for Number Six."

"That's to be expected; no one knows Number Six. Still, how did you find all of them?"

"I can't be seen by any security cameras in Academy City. Not to mention, no one can see me except for magicians unless I choose to make my presence known. Because of that, I've been exploring Academy City, searching for all the Level Fives." Giving the sheet to Accelerator, he scanned it.

"Third-rate and Mental Out are the easiest since they actually attend school. Kakine and Meltdowner are hard, but not impossible. Huh, so Sogiita does go to Nagatenjouki. Screw Number Six, I bet he'll never make his presence known."

"How do you know Number Six is a guy?" Shizuka asked.

"Instincts."

"Well, I have an idea to have all of you guys gather in one place, so I can explain the situation. Are they all aware of the Magic Side?"

"Third-rate might know from that level 0, and I think Kakine knows. The rest, I'm not so sure."  
"Darn, this makes my job much harder."

"What's your plan then?"

"Izumi asked me to tell all the Level Fives one place to gather on one specific day, telling them I'm under your orders. I don't know if they'll listen or not, but it's worth a try. Of course, I'll tell them you sent the message instead." Arin had a mischievous smile on her face.

"Well, as long as it works, I don't care. Your main problem's going to be keeping them from killing each other and me."

"Yeah, I noticed a lot of rivalry from Kakine Teitoku and Mugino Shizuri during my research. Shoukuhou Misaki and Misaka Mikoto also have a lot of rivalry."  
"Just saying, Kakine and I have a mutual hate for each other. Don't be surprised if he tries killing me when he sees me." Accelerator had a bored look on his face again.

"I doubt I'll ever see Number Six. To confirm: when and where should they all meet?"

"One day before the war starts. September 2, I think. Before 3 o'clock if possible. Accelerator, any ideas for a meeting place that's not here and won't attract attention?"

"An abandoned lab or research facility. Give me something to write with." Arin threw him a pen, and he scribbled an address. "District 13. There are a few abandoned labs there that should be alright for meetings. I doubt anyone has taken up residence there."

"Okay then, I'll take my leave. I'm just going to tell all of them what's going on. Don't worry about me." Arin disappeared.

"Well, that just about settles it. Time to contact Stiyl and Kanzaki and tell them about the meeting. Accelerator, give me your phone."

Accelerator slid his phone out of his pocket and sent it flying towards Izumi. The magician caught it with one hand, flipping it open and punching a number in. He motioned for the two to go back without him.

Shrugging, Accelerator and Shizuka went back to the apartment. Along the way, Accelerator commented, "We should really get you a phone, Shizuka."

"Yeah, I know. But how?"

"Yomikawa can take care of it. Especially since it's nearly mandatory for you right now. Talk to her when we get back."

"Okay."

 _With Arin- Tokiwadai dorms_

"Hmm, Accelerator said Railgun and Mental Out were the easiest to find. Well, looks like I'll find these two first!" Arin giggled and casually walked into the dorms, reveling in the freeness that nobody was able to see or sense her.

Peering over the dorm mistress's shoulder at the computer, she easily found the dorm numbers for both Level Fives. Deciding that Misaka Mikoto was an easier choice first, she disappeared and reappeared in the middle of Misaka's dorm room.

To her advantage, the Railgun was alone in her room, talking on her cellphone.

"Uh huh, sure. Okay, see you tonight then!" Misaka flipped the phone shut and stretched. "Finally done with the conversation. Geez, why can't Kuroko be a little less clingy?"

Deciding to make her presence known, Arin cleared her throat. "I believe you're Misaka Mikoto, third-ranked level 5, also known as the Railgun?"

Misaka whipped her head back, electricity sparking around her. "Who are you?"

Arin shrugged. "Nobody in particular. I have a message for you though. Level Fives exclusive only."

"Who sent you?"

Arin giggled. She loved putting on an act of an innocent little girl. "Accelerator, of course!"

"What?! Last time I checked I never saw you near him!"

"Oh, of course not. I'm not human. Not to mention he only met me yesterday."

"Then what are you?"

"The spirit of a grimoire. You do know about the magic side, right?"

"Only a little."

"Well, go ask Kamijou Touma and Index Librorum Prohibitorum if you don't know anything else. Anyways, all Level Fives are required to assemble in this research facility in District 13 on September 2, before 3 pm. Come alone, please. If you don't come, Academy City will fall without your help during the war." Arin placed a sheet of paper with the address on it. "That's all for now; I still have to tell the other Level Fives. Any idea where Shoukuhou Misaki is?"

"Maybe in her dorm room or the garden. Hey, wait! I'm not done asking ques-" she cut herself off as Arin disappeared.

"Sheesh, what's with people these days? Guess I have no choice but to ask the silver-hair short sister later. Still, which place is this?" Glancing at the address, her eyes widened. "Hey, why here of all places?!"

The address was an abandoned laboratory. "Why couldn't he choose someplace nicer?!"

 _The Tokiwadai Gardens_

Arin appeared in a lush garden, immediately searching for the fifth-ranked Level Five. Not to her surprise, Shoukuhou Misaki wasn't that hard to find.

From her earlier research, she had found out that Mental Out was usually surrounded by a large troupe of girls, also known as her clique. Walking around a bit, she found said girls clustered around a blonde with starry eyes.

 _Found her._ Arin smirked to herself, as she raised one hand and slashed it diagonally across the air in front of her face. The group of girls jerked up, blank-faced, and walked away, leaving the blonde alone.

Arin walked straight up to Mental Out, who had a half bemused and half apprehensive look on her face.

"Are you the one who mind-controlled the girls to walk away?"

"Yup, I am. And don't even try using your remote on me. It won't work at all, Shoukuhou Misaki, Mental Out."

Shoukuhou Misaki jerked her hand that was involuntarily creeping towards her remote back. "Who, no, _what_ are you and what do you want with me?"

"Hm, no one in particular. I'm only passing along a few messages. And since I needed to talk to you alone, I sent your little clique away."

"What kind of messages?"

"You have heard about the coming war, right? Do you know who the other side is?"

"I've only heard rumours."

"Eh, whatever. I'm passing along a message from Accelerator."

"Strongest? What does he want with me?"

"Specifically, all the Level Fives. Meet here, alone, on September 2 before 3 pm. Your help is mandatory in the war. If you don't come, Academy City may fall." Scribbling an address on a nearby notepad, Arin promptly disappeared, leaving the starry-eyed blonde to wonder just what was going on, as her clique members walked back to her, dazed looks on their faces.

 _In front of Nagatenjouki dorms_

"Two down, three to go. Maybe I should look for Number Six again later. Well, finding the ones who act attend school are easy." Arin stood in front of the Nagatenjouki dorms, observing the place carefully.

"Last time I came here, Sogiita Gunha was in his dorm. Wonder if I'll find him there today." Arin walked into the dorms, teleporting herself right into Attack Crash's room. She was still invisible to regular eyes at the moment, so she quickly checked to see if the seventh-ranked level 5 was in his dorm.

To her luck, the boy was on his bed, sleeping. Checking to make sure there was no one else in the dorm, Arin ever-so-innocently whipped the blankets off the esper's body, sending him sprawling to the ground.

"OUCH! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR, KAIN?! YOU DON'T HAVE ENOUGH GUTS TO WAKE ME UP NORMALLY?!"

"Calm down, Attack Crash. And no, I'm not your roommate or this mysterious Kain person."

Sitting up from his awkward position on the ground, Sogiita Gunha sat up with a large red bump on his forehead. His jaw dropped open when he saw Arin, though.

"Who are you and how did a elementary school girl get enough guts make it into my room? This is a freaking high school dorm!"

Arin waved a hand. "Forget the details. Besides, you shouldn't be sleeping so late into the day anyways. I have a message for you anyways, Attack Crash. Level Fives exclusive."

Sogiita sat up straighter, a hand still rubbing the large bump. "Level Fives only? What's it about?"

"Meet here, September 2nd, before 3 pm. The fate of this city will be determined. Come alone. Your help is needed in the coming war against the other side."

"What's the other side?"

"All will be revealed when you come. And don't bother me any further. I'm just a messenger; I need to talk to the other Level Fives."

"Wait a second! Who has enough guts to send an elementary school girl here to pass a message?!"

"I'm not an elementary school girl. And to answer your question, it's the Strongest. Accelerator." Arin disappeared into thin air, leaving the boy to stare at the address, head still whirling from what just happened.

Arin was about to teleport herself to ITEM's hangout, but she changed her mind and instead just teleported to the hallway outside of Sogiita's dorm, where she tilted her head, eyes narrowing at a patch of empty space. "I know you were listening. Am I correct to guess you are the mysterious sixth-ranked level Five?"

A black-haired boy appeared out of nowhere, icy pale blue eyes seen behind glasses. "Impressive. You sensed my presence. Then again, you're not human or esper, are you? Someone magical, I presume? That's the only way you'd know I'm a Level Five. Thanks to my disguised AIM field, nobody knows anything."

"I can sense more power than others. You are perceptive as well, I see. And you are correct. Considering you are right here, I assume you heard what was going on?"

"Yes, I did."

"Good for you; one less person I have to tell. Well, I'll see you September 2nd. I'm surprised you hid this long, though."

"I have my ways. I don't like being the centre of attention. You have yours as well to figure out who I am, don't you?"

Arin grinned. "I like you. Very calculating, mysterious, and you never reveal your sources. Well then, you can revel in your glee when the others see you."

She disappeared, leaving the boy to enter the dorm he shared with Attack Crash.

 _ITEM's main hangout_

Nobody knew why Mugino Shizuri was pissed off again. Whatever the reason was, she was on a rampage, screaming her head off about "I'll f***ing kill you bastard once I get my hands on you-"

Whatever it was, the other members had no choice but to hide somewhere protected by Kinuhata Saiai's Offense Armour.

"When is she going to stop?" Frenda Seivelun whined. "She's going to destroy our hangout again at this rate."

"She should cool down eventually. Although, this is longer than her usual tantrums." Takitsubo Rikou slumped against a wall, half-asleep.

"Would you two super shut up? I don't know how close she is. It's taking almost all I have to super keep up this shield," Kinuhata Saiai snapped at the other two girls, straining to keep up the consistent shield in case Mugino decided to shoot random Meltdowners everywhere again. She had already blocked three or four.

"Still, why is she so mad? I'm pretty sure the last job we did wouldn't piss her off that much." 

"Because we didn't get the pay we super deserved? She'd be irritated, but not super murderous."

Takitsubo Rikou sighed. "It's probably one of the other organizations."

"That again?" Frenda asked. "Don't tell me they did something while we were out again. I noticed nothing."

"Me neither. Now shut the super hell up, I think she's coming." All three girls scrunched up into smaller forms, Saiai the only one still reaching her hand out to keep up the shield.

Sure enough, they heard footsteps quickly getting louder as their leader stomped into the room. "Frenda! Saiai! Takitsubo!" Mugino Shizuri was a sight to behold. Even after her rampage, she still looked beautiful and composed. Her long tea-coloured hair fell behind her shoulders, her high-class purple dress and shoes neat and proper. The only part showing her rage was the expression on her face.

Frenda answered first. "What is it, Mugino?"

"Geez. Stop hiding next time. I got a message."

"A new job offer? Seriously?"

"No. A Level Five exclusive message."

"Really?" The three girls went over to Mugino, looking curiously at the paper that was crumpled in the fourth level Five's hands.

"You guys are coming with me. I don't care what that brat said, I'm bringing you three along. Considering Railgun and Dark Matter are going to be there."

"EHH? JUST WHAT HAPPENED?!"

"Well..."

 _10 minutes ago_

While the three girls had been off doing whatever they wanted, Mugino Shizuri was in another section of the hangout, reviewing the last job they had finished. They had completed it successfully, but they were refused the full pay because they had trashed the place completely.

Mugino growled and raked her hands through her hair. _I swear, some clients..._

She didn't get to finish the thought as a girl's voice was heard behind her. "Having some trouble there, Meltdowner? Oh well, at least you're alone."

Without thinking, Mugino Shizuri turned and shot a Meltdowner at the voice, only to see the owner of the voice, a young girl, tilt her head to one side and the Meltdowner miss her completely.

"Ah, come on, that wasn't very nice of you. I'm just a little girl."

"Little girl my ass. A common little girl wouldn't have found ITEM's hangout so easily and confronted the leader by herself."

"Well, at least hear what I have to say before you shoot one of these at me again. I'm just passing along a Level Five exclusive message from Accelerator."

Mugino tilted her head curiously. "What does Number One want from me?"

"Meet here, September 2, before 3 pm. Come alone. If you don't come, Academy City may fall to the other side. Your help is needed in the war. Also, try not to kill anyone else. Dark Matter and all the others will be there as well." Arin wrote down the address and was about to disappear, but the Level 5 called for her to wait.

"Why an abandoned lab?"

"Don't know. Attracts the least amount of attention. Besides, if you guys do end up killing each other, you won't be disturbing the public. Anyways, please try not to attack anyone. Bye!" Arin waved and disappeared.

A clock ticked faintly in the distance.

Tick.

Tock.

Tick.

To-"YOU F***ING BASTARD ONCE I GET MY HANDS ON YOUR SORRY BODY YOU'LL DIE!" That was when the three girls had heard their leader screaming profanities and had hidden from her wrath.

 _Flashback end_

"Oh, so that's what happened," commented Frenda.

Mugino sighed. "I don't care what the brat says, you three are coming with me or else I'll go insane."

"So all the Level Fives gathering in one place. Something tells me this won't super work out."

"Tch, that's what I was about to say when the brat disappeared on me."

"Disappeared? So she's a teleporter?"

"She's no esper. Only looked like she was seven or eight. Except the fact that she avoided a Meltdowner and wasn't scared at all when confronting me."

"That takes some super courage," Saiai commented.

"It wasn't courage; it's like she already knew all my moves! She was completely business-like. She's definitely not a human. I wonder what Number One's up to."

"Something strange, no doubt."

"Well, let's just wait until September 2 then. One day before the war starts."

"Agreed," all three girls said.

 _Somewhere in Academy City_

"Numbers three to seven done. I seriously hope no one kills each other. Ah well, I know Railgun's friends will most likely want to come along, and Meltdowner would want to as well. Hope Accelerator and Izumi can keep everyone entertained." Arin entered an alley, walking quite casually into a dark corner of Academy City nobody dared step foot in. In the middle, she stopped, sending out a very small searching spell to check for any people. Getting the results back in her mind, she mentally checked the area.

 _Good, so people are in the place. Time to do a flyover then. Better watch out. Number 2 is as dangerous as Accelerator._

Arin rose into the air, blue dress fluttering around her. A pair of sleek silver wings extended from her back, and she flew at a quick pace to the area with people her searching spell had detected.

Landing without a sound, Arin dropped the spell that masked her presence, and immediately ducked, avoiding the ball of strange white material that was thrown at her. The ball flew over her head and into the wall, causing it to explode.

"Quick reflexes. Impressive, but I'm afraid you are not supposed to be here." A teenager with long blond hair, green eyes, and pale skin wearing a maroon suit stepped out, another ball of white material in his hand.

Arin smiled. It was not a kind smile. "Second-ranked Level Five esper, Kakine Teitoku. Ability: Dark Matter."

The boy frowned slightly. "You are well-informed. Am I right to assume you are a messenger?"

"Yes. Accelerator sent me." Arin literally had no expression on her face.

Kakine's face twisted into a sneer. "Strongest? If he wanted to talk to me, why didn't he come himself? Is he weakening to the point where he thinks I'll beat him up and had to send a little girl to talk?"

Arin just started laughing. "Quite the contrary, Dark Matter. Accelerator, as a matter of fact, is quite powerful, possibly more than ever. However, your help is needed to defeat the Magic Side in the upcoming war. All Level Fives are required to come here at September 2nd, before 3 pm. Since you are as powerful, well, maybe slightly lower, as Accelerator, your help will be greatly appreciated in the war. If you don't help, Academy City could fall and even you won't be able to stop it, Kakine Teitoku."

Arin sent a paper airplane flying into the wall beside the boy, and disappeared into thin air, leaving the second-ranked level Five to pick up the airplane and unfold it.

 _Back at the apartment_

Accelerator was busy running through spells in his mind once again, his eyes closed, the sword present at his side. Shizuka was creating a castle model out of water and hardened air. She was also apparently listening to music, her ears covered with headphones. Izumi was nowhere to be seen. Yoshikawa and Yomikawa had taken Last Order out for a trip to the mall.

Arin appeared in the living room, breaking Accelerator's concentration. He opened his eyes, giving her a half-annoyed scowl. "You're back."

"I am. And honestly, that took a lot out of me, even if I'm not human. Where's Izumi?"

"Somewhere. Talking to that level 0, the sister, and the other two magicians."

"Okay then. I found all the Level Fives and delivered the message."

Accelerator had a curious look on his face. "How did they react?"

"I left before I could get most of their reactions. Although Sogiita's reaction was quite funny. I also saw someone who may have been the mysterious sixth-ranked level Five."

The normally apathetic esper did a double take. "What? How would you know?"

"Similar to Last Order's AIM field sensor, I can sense power in people. I met someone with purposefully hidden power outside Sogiita's dorm. He apparently claimed to be the sixth-ranked, in hiding."

Shizuka decided to jump into the conversation, removing the headphones and letting the model dissipate. "What does he look like?"

"Maybe slightly shorter than Accelerator, neat black hair, icy blue eyes, and glasses. His ability seems similar to invisibility, but it's not it. He's roommates with Attack Crash."

"So what ability is it?"

"Either some kind of invisibility that also masks his complete presence or something else. I never caught his name."

"Well, we can get Yoshikawa to hack the Nagatenjouki student list later."

"And what are you going to do? There are probably a lot of students who look like that."

"If he's not a Level Five, he should be posing as a level 4 or 3 since anything that confuses AIM fields can only go so far. That narrows a lot down. Add his presumed ability and we'll get his name."

Arin glanced at Accelerator. "You seem to have everything planned out."

"I don't. Yoshikawa can do that kind of stuff easily though."

"Well, Kakine Teitoku was certainly very irritated when he heard your name."

Accelerator snickered. "That's expected from him. I should have told you to send along a special message from me to him."

"What would you have said?"

Accelerator smirked. "Nothing much. Enough to piss him off so badly he might go after me."

Arin rolled her eyes. "And I wouldn't have passed along the message. Also, the place you designated for all of them to meet doesn't seem to be popular with them."

"They're going to have to deal with it. Hope they don't trash the place or kill each other then."

"Also, I think Misaka Mikoto and Mugino Shizuri both might be bringing some friends along."

Accelerator groaned in irritation. "Tch. How troublesome. And after they were specifically told to come alone."

Arin shrugged. "Can't blame them. They seem like the only other level Fives with a somewhat social life. Although, with my earlier research, Mugino Shizuri's group are more powerful. Two level fours, and one foreigner, it seems, who's an expert with explosives. Railgun's friends consist of a level four, a level 0, and a level 1."

Accelerator didn't look surprised. "Trust Railgun to have friends on the weaker esper side. Besides, Fourth is the leader of one of the organizations that make up Academy City's darkness. She'd need strong espers."

"Arin, how do you know this much?"

"While you and Accelerator were busy training or looking through the Moonlight Codex, I was getting information on all the Level Fives. And yes, that included minor stalking. I'm the perfect spy, anyways."

Abruptly, the door opened and Izumi came in, with a half-annoyed and half-exhausted look on his face. "I'm back," he said tiredly. Collapsing on the empty couch, he sighed.

"What happened, Izumi?"

"Oh, you're back, Arin. Nothing much. Got into a minor tangle with some thugs. I forgot just how many gang groups there were in this city. Anyways, Stiyl, Kanzaki, Index and Imagine Breaker are going to the meeting. I assume every level five was notified?"

Arin gave him a thumbs-up. Izumi smiled. "One less thing to worry about."

"The only problem is whether they'll show up or not. Also, Railgun and Meltdowner might bring some friends. You and Accelerator better find out how to amuse everyone without anyone killing each other."

Izumi scowled. "Forgot about that. Never mind. If at least three of them show up, then we should be fine. For now, we should plan." He held up a data stick. "Do we have a laptop anywhere?"

"Yoshikawa and Yomikawa have laptops, but I don't know the passwords for them. They never let me or the brat near them anyways."

"Oh, fine. Looks like we have to wait," Izumi said irritably. "I need a break again. Give the data stick to Kikyou when she comes back from wherever." He lay down on the couch, falling asleep rather quickly.

Accelerator raised one eyebrow in surprise. "His abnormal sleep schedule will catch up to him one day."

"He needs a long break. I can sense very low magic levels. Probably from training you guys continuously. Don't wake him."

Shizuka chose to remake her water castle, putting her headphones back on, while Accelerator detached the sword hanging from his jeans. Holding the scabbard in his hands, he studied the markings. Arin came over to his side.

"These runes speak of great power, of purity, of heaven. It is essentially the whole power of an archangel from Heaven, sealed in that sword. Michael must have trusted you a lot as his host to keep that sword on you on Earth."

"He only spoke to me that one time when he gave it to me. Something about the sword being essential to the war."

Arin nodded. "Michael and Lucifer are destined to fight with swords and power. Only one will be the victor. The question is who."

Accelerator was tempted to draw the sword and he put his hand on the handle, but Arin put her hand on his wrist and shook her head. "Yoshikawa and Yomikawa were right to not let you draw the sword, although they didn't have the same reason for not letting you do it. If you do at the wrong time, it will release a wave of power which can flatten the entire world. The scabbard is the seal to stop that."

Accelerator immediately jerked his hand off the sword. "And that's what Michael didn't tell me," he muttered.

"He was right not to tell you. After all, would you have accepted it then?"

"Tch."

"I'll take that as an 'I don't know'."

"I have one more question."

"Yeah?"

"Michael said I had to make a huge sacrifice in order for him to fully awaken. What is it?"

Arin went silent, multiple emotions flashing across her face before settling on expressionless. "Would you go through it if I tell you what you are supposed to do?

Accelerator glared. "Stop replying to my question with another damn question and tell me."

Arin grabbed Accelerator firmly, almost painfully by the shoulders, gripping tight, and looked into his eyes. "I will only ask one more time." Her eyes glowed with power, and-was that anger or seriousness? "Will you go through if I tell you? Many have been asked this question and failed. Michael specifically chose not to tell you for fear that you would back down."

Refusing to back down, he said: "I won't back down. No matter what."

Arin released him. "Your determination has made you stronger than before. Very well. I'll tell you." She leaned over to his ear and whispered a few words. His eyes widened with shock. Arin decided to disappear after that.

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Accelerator snapped out of the shock, methodically re-attaching the sword to his jeans. His face was void of expression, but inside was a turmoil of shock, horror, an alien fear, and buried deep below, fierce determination and a resolve to not give up.

 **(Quick AN: I know that sounded awful. But that's the best I came up with. Please continue reading if you're still interested.)**

 _30 minutes later_

The door opened, and in came Yoshikawa and Yomikawa. Last Order was trailing behind them, twirling around happily to show off the new light pink cardigan she had been bought.

"We're back!"

Shizuka removed her headphones and smiled at the trio. "Welcome back, you three. Hey Last Order, is that a new cardigan? It looks perfect on you!"

"'Thanks, Shizuka-chan!' Says MISAKA as MISAKA twirls around again in happiness!"

Yomikawa glanced at Accelerator and Izumi. The former apparently had not heard them come in and the latter was still asleep. "Hey, what's up with the boys again?"

"Accelerator's been running through spells in his mind for the past few hours and Izumi is apparently trying to recharge his batteries. Arin said he needs a long break."

"Well then, we just have to stay quiet, right?"

"Yeah."

"What time is it anyways?"

Shizuka glanced at the clock, eyes shooting wide open with surprise. "It's already 6:45?!"

"Well then, time to cook some dinner! Kikyou, help me out. I'm making curry tonight!"

"Alright, alright. Shizuka, mind playing with Last Order? Snap Accelerator back to reality while you're at it."

Shizuka readily agreed. She sent a focused stream of air to Accelerator, which bounced off immediately, but it disturbed him enough to open his eyes. He scowled, but said nothing until his eyes landed on the adults and clone.

"You guys are finally back. Hey there, brat. By the way, I need your computer, Yoshikawa."

"What for?"

"Two things, actually. One, Izumi gave us a data stick to look through." Accelerator held up the green data stick Izumi put on the table. "Two, I'm asking you to hack into the Nagatenjouki student database."  
Yoshikawa raised an eyebrow, but didn't question it. "After dinner."

Accelerator gave a single nod, carefully placing the data stick back on the table.

 _After dinner_

"That tasted great as usual. I'm surprised Izumi is still asleep." Shizuka got up, taking her plates to the kitchen.

"He should wake up eventually. I guess I'll leave the leftovers in the fridge." Yomikawa joined her in the kitchen, sticking the plates in the dishwasher.

Yoshikawa glanced at Accelerator. "Do you want my laptop now?"

"Yeah."

"Give me a minute." She put her plates in the kitchen, and went to her room, bringing out the slim black laptop. "Everyone, clear the table first."

After the table was cleared, Yoshikawa set her laptop on the table and turned it on, typing in her password. "Accelerator, you said Nagatenjouki student database, right?"

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"Arin may have found the mysterious sixth-ranked level five there. Roommate of Sogiita Gunha, apparently."

"Hmm, let's see what I can do." She clicked an application, and started typing rapidly, clicking with her mouse occasionally to select options. Then she stopped. "I can't hack into the student dorm list without getting tracked. Their security is way too high. Give me the description."

"Male, black hair, icy blue eyes, glasses, presumed ability is invisibility. He might be registered as a level 4 or 3."

Yoshikawa typed in the description and clicked "search", leaving only one person. She double-clicked on the person, and the description popped up. "Is this one correct?"

Accelerator examined the photo. The boy had neat jet-black hair with a streak of silver on one side, and icy pale blue eyes with no warmth in them covered with black-framed glasses. The thin smile on his face conveyed an air of mystery. The label was _KISARAGI KAIN, LEVEL 4. ABILITY: INVISIBLE PHASER._

"Invisible Phaser? That's quite a rare ability. The ability to pass through solid objects while being invisible. Regular phasers can be seen." Yoshikawa looked at the ability with some interest. "It's almost like a Dual-Skill, but not quite."

"I'm going to call Arin." Closing his eyes, Accelerator called out to Arin in his mind, opening his eyes when he sensed Arin appear in the room.

Arin inclined her head to the others, saving a smile to Last Order, who returned it. She turned to the laptop. "Is this what you found?"

"Yoshikawa couldn't hack into the student dorm list, so she put in the description. We only got one person, so he should be it."

Arin scrutinized the picture carefully. Finally, she averted her eyes from the screen and gave a single affirmative nod. "I didn't see the silver streak, but it was most likely due to the angle. The name should fit as well."

"So he hid as a level 4. No wonder nobody knows much about him."

"Well, there are people who hate the spotlight. Am I correct, or is Misaka Mikoto the level 5 representative in the public face of Academy City?"

"You're right. She's the only one who participates in public events regularly. While Mental Out and Attack Crash appear rarely, Accelerator and the others never show up." Yomikawa said.

Accelerator rolled his eyes. "Second and Number Four are part of Academy City's darkness. They would never appear during daytime. Meanwhile, public events are not what I participate in."

"Would it kill you to at least be more social?"

"Tch." Accelerator scoffed and looked away.

"Well, am I allowed to go? I need to replenish some of my own magic as well." Arin had an apologetic look on her face. "I used up quite a bit today."

"Yeah, sure. Later." Arin disappeared after Accelerator said those three words.

"Well then, time to see what Izumi put in this data stick." Yoshikawa took the data stick and inserted it in the laptop. A window popped up, and the former scientist took a look. There were only two folders. "Which one should we start with?" She spun the laptop around so everyone could take a look."

"'Huh? Why is there a folder just saying Academy City?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA questions the use of labels. 'That description seems too vague.'"

"The brat's right. What could Izumi have put in a folder like that?"

"Let's check that first. The second one..." Shizuka trailed off, her face paling to white. "No way..."

"Huh? What's wrong?" Accelerator took a look at the file label. "The Silent Moon Project..."

"That's the series of experiments I was in...how did Izumi get his hands on these?!" Shizuka had a look of astonishment and poorly hidden fear.

Yomikawa put a calming hand on her shoulder. "If it's too hard for you, we don't have to look at that file right now."

Shizuka shook her head. "I'm fine. I was just startled. However, can we just take a look at the Academy City one first?"

"Good idea." Yoshikawa clicked on said folder, and her jaw dropped open. She glared accusingly at the sleeping Izumi. "How in the world did you get these files and links?"

"Huh?" Yomikawa leaned over to look. She had the same reaction as Yoshikawa.

Accelerator, Shizuka and Last Order gave identical questioning looks at the women. In response, they moved away from the laptop, showing the trio.

Accelerator was the first to react. "Oi, how the hell did he get these?"

"'Even the MISAKA network doesn't have access to these,' cries MISAKA as MISAKA tries to hide her shock."

Accelerator scrolled through the files quickly, scanning the file labels one by one. "He hacked into every single security camera in Academy City without being tracked. He then put the links for every one of them on here, and they're showing live feed. Not to mention, he managed to get his hands on maps of Academy City. The ones that show literally everything."

"Apparently some magicians are experts with technology as well, no less than Academy City technology," Yoshikawa observed. She quickly exited out of that folder. "Never knew magicians could also be expert hackers."

Accelerator jerked his head towards Izumi. "With this guy, no one can tell. He's so many different things."

"Guess you're right. Time to look at the next one. Shizuka, you sure you're alright?"

Shizuka took a deep breath and nodded. "I'll be fine."

Yoshikawa clicked on the file, which displayed a list of different files. She clicked the first one, which turned out to be Shizuka's profile at age 8. A sharp intake of air could be heard from Shizuka, but Yoshikawa read on.

 _NAME: TSUKIKO SHIZUKA_

 _AGE: 8_

 _GENDER: FEMALE_

 _PRESUMED ESPER ABILITY: ELEMENT MANIPULATION (4)_

 _LEVEL: UNKNOWN_ _(PRESUMABLY 5)_

 _PARENTS: UNKNOWN_

 _GEMSTONE? NO_

 _With the ability of the manipulation of the elements air, water, fire and earth, Tsukiko Shizuka may have enough capability to be a Dual-Skill. However, there is no information regarding how she got her elemental skills in the first place. There is no record of her ever going through the Power Curriculum, but she does possess great power. She has been approved for the Dual-Skill project known as the Silent Moon Project, codename Silent Child of the Moon._

Yoshikawa reached the end of the page. "Knew it. Another Dual-Skill project. Although, I'm surprised there's nothing about level 6."

"'If a Dual-Skill has both abilities at level 5, they might count as level 6,' says MISAKA as MISAKA hypothesizes."

"The brat may be right."

"Time to see the next few files then." Yoshikawa clicked on a few others, which only displayed graphs or charts that didn't give a lot of information. Clicking on the last file which was only created weeks ago, her eyes went wide.

"I think this is the gist of it," she said, calling everyone over.

The description read: After 10 years of testing with the regular Power Curriculum and Testament, Tsukiko Shizuka has acquired a second ability: Telepathy. It is similar to that of Mental Out, but there are variances. There is no data on how much power her telepathy has.

Below that paragraph was a small note written in tiny, tiny, font. After scanning the note, Yoshikawa gasped in horror. "This was definitely more sadistic than your experiment, Accelerator."

Accelerator and Last Order read the note. Last Order went still from shock, and Accelerator kept a blank face as best he could while hiding his own shock. Both of the women couldn't say a thing. Shizuka had closed her eyes, avoiding looks.

The note read: Subject has grown too dangerous to handle. With subject being able to handle two powerful abilities, it is possible to start more Dual-Skill projects on other espers. Subject (prototype) will be disposed of.

"And then they stuck a bomb in my room, attempting for a fast kill. At that time, I was grateful for the new second ability so I could read their minds."

Wordlessly, Last Order hugged Shizuka. Smiling sadly, Shizuka hugged the small clone back. "I'm alright, really. I managed to escape and I got rescued. I'm in a much better place now."

"What I don't get is why Izumi decided to put this information in here." Accelerator had an inquisitive look on his face, masking his actual irritation and anger.

"Probably to inform you guys about me and the project I was in. The Academy City one is most likely needed for the war."

"True."

"Sorry I didn't tell you guys about the project earlier. The memories were a little too painful."

"No, no, it's alright. We understand." Yomikawa gave Shizuka a comforting smile.

Shizuka sighed. "I'm so lucky that I'm surrounding by people who care."

"Even if it's not shown, we all care for you," Yomikawa said, glancing pointedly at Accelerator. He scoffed and ignored the older woman.

Shizuka snickered mentally, before she was interrupted by a yawn.

"Well, it's already 10:30 pm. Last Order, time to sleep. Aiho, go with her." Yoshikawa removed the data stick, sliding it across the table to Accelerator. She then turned off her laptop, closing it and tucking it under her arm, heading to her bedroom.

Yomikawa and Last Order disappeared into the hallway, leaving Accelerator and Shizuka in the living room. Surprisingly, Izumi was still asleep.

Shizuka glanced at the older man. "I wonder when he's going to wake up."

"Who knows?" With a flash of silver light, the Moonlight Codex appeared in Accelerator's hands. "I'm going to review some barrier spells. What are you going to do?"

"Maybe I'll sleep."

"Wait." Accelerator handed his phone to her. "You should know more about the other Level Fives. I inputted some extra information in. Not much, really, and there's nothing about Number Six. Still, more information is better. Give the phone back to me tomorrow morning."

"Okay, thanks." Shizuka pocketed the phone and headed to the hallway. "Good night, Accelerator."

"Good night," he said absently, turning a page in the grimoire.

Shizuka disappeared down the hallway, quiet footsteps receding away. As soon as he heard the door close quietly, he snapped the cover shut and let the book disappear, glaring at the sleeping Izumi.

"Seriously, when will you wake up? Well, if you can hear me, we looked at the data stick. I'm keeping it for now." Accelerator headed outside to the roof, barely making any sound.

 _On the rooftop_

Accelerator leaned against the small wall that had covered the stairway to the roof, slowly sliding down until he was sitting on the roof. He unclipped the sword and placed it on his lap. He then closed his eyes and concentrated.

He found himself floating in the familiar white void again. In front of him, a bright white light dimmed to reveal Michael's current human form.

 _Your magic is improving._

"Why didn't you tell me?" Accelerator ignored Michael's statement and went straight to the question that had been lingering on his mind for quite a while.

 _Do you know how many people have been in the same situation as you? And how many refused the burden?_ _I needed to test your trust in me. Would you have taken the burden if I told you everything in the beginning?_

Accelerator didn't say a word. Michael's blank eyes blinked, but the archangel was still staring unflinchingly at the esper.

 _Your heart and mind are confused, hesitant. Let me tell you this: you did have a choice in the beginning. When I made my presence known to you, you could have told me to leave, and I would have done so. Yet, you did not. That alone tells me you were willing to keep me in your body, to battle for the earth's very existence. Is your epitaph not "The one who wields the power of God"? You truly do wield the power that is almost at the level of Heaven. Right now, you are the only hope at protecting your home and your loved ones._

Accelerator finally spoke. "Fine. I'm only doing this since there's no going back now. Now tell me what I'm supposed to do."

Michael almost smiled. _There are other reasons, are there not? I can read your heart and mind. You already know what plays a key role in fully awakening. Yet, there is one other part: the seal, or in this case, a magic circle._

"Which is?"

 _You have already studied the Moonlight Codex in full, have you not? The section on awakening and angels was written in a script that was incomprehensible to you._

"Yeah, I remember that."

 _Your father purposely wrote it in a language that was lost to humans millennia ago. Very few people know that language. Even if you did absorb all the knowledge embedded in the Moonlight Codex, you would not be able to comprehend that language._

"What does it say then?"

 _It actually does not contain accurate information. Your father wrote down the spells that were thought to be Awakening spells, but they are not. Awakening spells are not known to anyone on earth except for angels' hosts._

"So you're going to tell me the right stuff?"

 _Hold still and whatever you do, do not will my presence away._

Michael stood behind Accelerator, pressing both hands on the teen's head. A blinding light surged up, forcing Accelerator to close his eyes. Suddenly, a very jarring pain seared through his brain, and he barely managed to keep standing, gritting his teeth.

As abruptly as it started, the pain ended. Accelerator felt the pressure on his head disappear, and Michael stood once again in front of him.

 _Do you feel any different?_

"No."

 _Recall the awakening spell._

Accelerator called up the spells he had seen in the Moonlight Codex, surprised when he realized that the spells had changed. "What happened?"

 _Essentially, I changed your memories of that spell into the correct form. However, that is only part of the real spell. I will help with the other part when the time comes. You will know when the time comes._

"How would I know?!"

 _It is what you humans would call intuition, or something like that._

"Fine." Accelerator was tempted to say something else, but Michael kept on speaking.

 _I have also given you a sliver of my power. You are free to call upon it to battle, but be careful. If you overuse it, you will destroy yourself. Only use it when you are up against a very powerful magician. Do not use it to take care of weaker obstacles._

"Okay, I get it."

Michael had a faint smile on his face. _Try not to battle Imagine Breaker with my power. The results will be...rather catastrophic. He does have power to cancel out supernatural powers, but the power of a major archangel will be too much too handle, even for him._

Accelerator had a disappointed look on his face, but said nothing. The white void started fading, but it suddenly reappeared.

 _One more thing. The sword has_ _some different changes now._

"Huh? What now?"

 _The Moonlight Codex was right, you know. Once the sword is unsheathed, it will release a wave of power strong enough to decimate the earth. Since you should actually be using the sword before the battle to get used to it, I have made one change._

"Which is?"

 _You are able to unsheathe the sword now. I have transferred the power to the scabbard. However, when you need to unleash the full power, say this spell. Be careful._

"Alright, I got it. Wait, what spell?"

Michael blinked, and the spell popped into Accelerator's mind. 

The white void disappeared, and Accelerator found himself back on the roof. He slid his hand into his pocket for his phone to check the time, and then remembered he had given it to Shizuka. He glanced at the darkening night sky.

"Let's see...nothing has really changed, and I think the sky's still the same besides the moon...maybe only one or two hours have passed. Looks like I got plenty of time."

Taking the sword in his hands, he put one hand on the scabbard and the other hand on the handle, and slowly unsheathed the sword. To his relief, nothing happened. When the sword was fully unsheathed, he clipped the scabbard to his jeans and held the sword in his right hand, studying it.

The sword was definitely not earth-made. It was very light. The metal used to forge it was also unknown. It resembled silver to some degree, but it wasn't it. The model didn't fit any of the swords that had existed on earth. The sword was razor-sharp with a double-edged blade, and there was curling script on the white handle.

Accelerator made a few experimental swings, grateful for the knowledge Michael had passed onto him. In the course of minutes, Michael had taught him to hold the sword, attack, parry, defend, and other techniques. The sword gleamed with a bright silver light under the moon, lighting up the roof. He silently wished for an actual opponent soon.

After some minutes of parrying and attacking imaginary enemies, Accelerator stopped and slid the sword back in the sheath, making sure not to make a single sound. He made his way back to the apartment, slipping in without a sound. Going to his room, he lay down and fell asleep rather quickly, the idea of the level Fives meeting up still lingering in his mind.

 _Only a few more days to figure out how to prevent everyone from killing each other,_ he mused before falling fully into oblivion.

 **Okay, next chapter will definitely be the level 5s meeting up. Just saying, I don't know much about swords or fighting, so any duel scene will be very crappy in the future. I'll read up on some other fanfics that have sword fighting in them, but I doubt my ideas will be that good. Please bear with me.**


	15. Meeting Up

**The Level Fives meet up! Read on to see what happens. Also, please read the AN at the bottom. It's very important.**

 _September_ 2 _-One day before the war_

Accelerator woke up at 6:30, thanks to Last Order kicking him again. Realizing that he wouldn't be able to sleep again, he got up, immediately grabbing a can of coffee and heading onto the roof, the sword now ever-present at his side, attached to the left leg of his jeans. He didn't pay attention to any of his surroundings when he left the apartment.

Once he reached the roof, he was surprised to see Izumi lying on the roof, hands folded behind his head. Izumi raised a hand, wordlessly beckoning the esper over. Accelerator cautiously approached the older magician, walking slowly until he was at Izumi's side.

"Yo." Izumi sat up, nodding at Accelerator.

"I didn't think you'd wake up earlier than me," Accelerator admitted.

"I was up at 4. Couldn't sleep. What about you?"

"Couldn't sleep either. What were you doing all this time?"

"I was getting some supplies. Well, one thing."

Accelerator said nothing, waiting for Izumi to answer. Izumi snapped his fingers, and a computer bag appeared beside him. Opening the computer bag, Izumi took out a sleek silver-black laptop.

"Considering Kikyou and Aiho didn't want me touching their laptops, I had to get my own. Turns out a laptop store opened at 5:30. Before that, I was just walking around."

Accelerator reached out and ran his fingertips over the smooth cover. "What do you need the laptop for?"

"You guys saw the data stick. Do the math."

"Hacking into all the security cameras in order to keep track of the magicians entering the city."

"Correct." Izumi turned on the laptop, showing a black background with white rune-like script. Taking out the data stick from somewhere in his black clothes, Izumi inserted it in the laptop, opening the file with the security cameras. "As of now, Academy City has raised the security to orange. There is no one entering or leaving the city. I have already checked all the security cameras bordering the city and no one is heading in or past them."

"I want to ask you one thing."

"Shoot."

"How did you hack into all the security cameras?"

Izumi smiled a cold smile that managed to even chill Accelerator to the bone. "I'm not the best hacker, but I am excellent at manipulating regular humans to do my will. On my own, I'd be able to hack into only the border cameras in this city, but with a strong manipulation spell, I can get a normal scientist or expert hacker to do as I wish."

Accelerator repressed a shudder. In that moment, Izumi had almost seemed inhuman, even more than he was when he was still killing the clones. "So you're saying you manipulated one of the best hackers in this city to hack all the security cameras in this city and Shizuka's experiments."

"Oh, I got Shizuka's files myself." Izumi's smile dropped off his face and his expression changed to a sober one. "I regret doing that. If Hikaru and Chihiro were still alive, they'd have my head if they saw the files."

"Did you have to erase our memories?"

"I wonder. Being a diviner means you have to deal with an infinite number or twisting futures, which all depend on one action. The futures I had seen where I didn't erase your memories, you two were later killed. The only future that led up to you two surviving was the one where I erased your memories."

"I thought you said you only got a few visions."

"It's complicated. An amateur diviner has to deal with plenty of visions, enough to nearly drive them mad if they can't control them. An expert diviner can control his visions, but he will occasionally get ones that he cannot control. For me and Tsukasa, we were able to control our visions from the start, but we always got visions that we couldn't control, the ones about future timelines that led to only disaster."

"Doesn't make sense, but I don't really care."

"Divination is actually forbidden these days by the Roman Catholics. In short, I'm a renegade magician in their eyes."

"Is that what you meant by a black spot on their records when you were interrogating Nathalia?"

Izumi scoffed. "They're a bunch of hypocrites these days. Maybe it's thanks to Lucifer's manipulation, but they've fallen way below their usual level of force."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I've observed Imagine Breaker's fights with the Romans. Up until now, all their magic was based off the Scriptures. Right now, the magicians that are in the Roman Catholic Church that are coming to fight us are using magic that was frowned upon by the Catholics. Necromancy was a forbidden, outlawed magic until now. So was simulcry."

"No wonder I've seen spells about those subjects in the Moonlight Codex."

"Tsukasa liked researching the forbidden magics when he was still in Necessarius. He never used the magic, though. He had one hell of a time hiding his research from the higher-ups in Necessarius, but he always told me it was worth it. Anyways, are you ready for today?"

"You mean preventing everyone from killing each other? No. I might just sit back and watch."

"We'll need all the help we can get. Who's the strongest level 5 besides you and Shizuka?"

"As much as I hate to admit it, Kakine Teitoku is very powerful."

"Dark Matter, right?"

"Yeah."

"He'd definitely give magicians a run for their money. Well, if he shows up, don't kill him."

Accelerator laughed harshly. "He'll try killing me instead."

Izumi pretended not to hear him, opening the links for the security cameras. "Mind telling me which building is the one you designated for the meeting?"

Accelerator scrolled through the list, eventually stopping at a group of cameras. He pointed them out to Izumi. Nodding his thanks, Izumi took the laptop back.

"When should we head to the building?"

"Right now, if you want. Who knows when they'll come? All we specified was before 3 pm."

"Let's wait for Shizuka."

"Good point. Want to head back?"

"Yeah." Realizing he still didn't open his coffee yet, Accelerator opened the can and drank it all, before following Izumi back down.

 _In the apartment-7:30_

Yomikawa and Yoshikawa were already awake, the former making breakfast and the latter drinking a hot cup of coffee. The TV was on.

"Looks like you two are the early birds," said Yoshikawa. "I thought Aiho was the earliest until she noticed that you two weren't in the house."

"I'm guessing you guys were on the roof again." Yomikawa entered the living room, carrying plates of food.

"Yeah. Well, I went somewhere and got this." Izumi showed them the laptop.

Yoshikawa glanced at the laptop. "Nice model. I'm guessing you got your own since mine and Aiho's are off-limits."

"Seriously, why won't you guys let me use them?"

"Because they contain plenty of information that we don't want others to know about."

"Yeah, whatever." Izumi flung himself onto the empty couch. "Accelerator, go wake up Shizuka."

Accelerator glared at Izumi irritatedly, but said nothing, walking into the hallway. Going to Shizuka's room, he put his ear to the door, listening for any movement. Hearing nothing but soft breathing, he cracked open the door and slipped inside.

In the course of a few days, Yoshikawa, Yomikawa and Shizuka had completely transformed the old boring room into a place Accelerator barely recognized. Each wall was a different shade of blue, with swirling silver patterns twisting and curling across the blue background. On the ceiling, Shizuka had painted a midnight blue sky, with a large silver crescent moon and tiny pinpricks of white, yellow, blue and red, representing stars. The bed had watery blue and white sheets.

Shizuka was currently still sleeping, blue and silver-streaked hair splayed across the pillow. She was dressed in ivory blue pajamas; her pale skin almost translucent.

Deciding to wake her up quickly, Accelerator looked around for some water. To his advantage, a glass of water was on the bedside table. Gathering the water onto his palm with his ability, he casually dropped it onto her face.

Shizuka woke up immediately, spluttering. Quickly getting her bearings, she snapped her fingers and the water disappeared from her face. She gave Accelerator a death glare, which he returned with a smirk.

"What the hell was that for?!"

"Izumi told me to wake you up. He never specified what way."

"Oh, you are going to be _so_ dead when I get my hands on you. Get back here, Accelerator!" Shizuka yelled at the quickly retreating figure of the esper. He saluted her mockingly and disappeared into the hallway.

Grumbling under her breath, Shizuka changed into a plain white T-shirt and threw a blue cardigan over it, putting on a pair of blue jeans. She made her way to the living room, greeting the two women while throwing another death glare at Accelerator. He returned it with another smirk. Izumi gave her a brief nod, and turned back to eating his breakfast.

Accepting a plate of food from Yomikawa, Shizuka dug in eagerly. After finishing half the plate, she decided to talk. "So, why did I need to be woken up that early?"

"We should be heading over to the meeting area early." Izumi finished the last bits of food on his plate, snapping his fingers and sending the plate flying to the kitchen.

Yomikawa glared at him. "I told you not to use magic on my possessions."

"Whatever. I'm lazy."

"So we should head over there early and wait for everyone to arrive. You know if we head there now, we'll be waiting for around 7 hours before people actually show up." Shizuka went back to eating.

"So let's hope they arrive before 3 pm."

"Can't we send someone as lookout and alert the others when someone's approaching?"

"Good point, Accelerator. Who should do it?"

Arin appeared by Accelerator's side. "Accelerator already asked me. I have set up a small spell that alerts the people inside to people outside. I'll wait inside the lab and alert you guys when the first people arrive.

"Aren't you going to get bored, Arin?"

"Nope. I'm going to stay inside my magical home dimension-the place where I took you, Accelerator. I've adjusted the time of the place so that one minute in my place is one hour here. So basically, I only need to spend seven minutes in my place. I'll alert Accelerator in his mind when my spell senses something."

"Wow, okay then."

"So what do you think we should be doing for the next couple hours?"

"Actually, can I go to your dimension with you, Arin?"

Arin stood for a while, tilting her head. "Sure, why not? You two can come along as well and won't be bored as much." She smiled at Shizuka. "Although, I'll bet you'll adjust better, since you have some of the same power as me."

"Wait, what about the brat? She's not going to be happy about being left behind."

Arin had an apologetic look on her face. "Oops, forgot about her. Sorry. I think she might be able to come, but my dimension is a pure magic place. I don't know if she can handle it."

"The brat's been touched by magic before. She can handle it."

"Huh? Seriously?!"

Accelerator gave everyone a brief description of the song he had heard from Index during his fight with Kihara Amata. "Actually, I'm not even sure. Michael told me."

"Well, worth a try, isn't it?" Everyone turned to Yoshikawa. "Aiho has work, so she has to leave soon. I'll stay and watch the house. You guys go on ahead."

"Thanks, Kikyou." Aiho gave her old friend a smile, and hurried out the door, not before whispering a few words in the researcher's ear.

Izumi echoed Yomikawa's words of thanks, and turned back to Accelerator and Shizuka. "You guys are insisting on waiting for Last Order, right?"  
Both teens nodded. Suddenly, they heard the pattering of footsteps in the hallway. They turned their heads to see a sleepy Last Order. "'MISAKA heard her name,' says MISAKA as MISAKA tries to shake herself awake.'Good morning, by the way.'"

"Morning, Last Order. We were just discussing what to do today. Do you want to explore another dimension?" Arin gave Last Order a brief explanation of what they had been talking about.

After a while of consideration, a few questions, and a large plate of breakfast, Last Order said: "'MISAKA would like to come,' says MISAKA as MISAKA voices her opinion."

Arin smiled. "Great! Just remember we leave after seven minutes in there. The MISAKA network will be fine without the core, right?"

Last Order nodded. "'The MISAKA network will be fine without MISAKA for up to 72 hours. Can we go now?' Asks MISAKA impatiently as MISAKA taps her foot."

"Well, we can leave now. My spell still doesn't sense anyone. Do you guys want to go now?" Arin addressed the others.

"Sure."

"Don't care."

"Earlier the better. See you later, Kikyou. If I ever see you again, that is."

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?"

"All of you guys didn't realize? If this all goes according to plan, we'll be stuck in the battles of our lives by tomorrow."

"This is why I'm determined to live through. What about you, Accelerator?" Shizuka glanced at Accelerator.

Accelerator said nothing, the merest hint of doubt in his eyes, unnoticed by everyone besides Izumi. "What she said." His voice was a monotone.

"Well then, go enjoy yourselves at Arin's dimension. Last Order, mind telling me what's it like when you come back?"

"'Okay!' Says MISAKA as MISAKA gives her answer."

"Well then, let's go. Gather in a circle and hold hands, guys. I'll stand in the middle."

"Wait a second. Izumi, come with me." Izumi hesitated until Yoshikawa had frantically made some gestures which Accelerator and Shizuka had no comprehension of. Izumi had a look of remembrance in his face, and followed Yoshikawa to her bedroom. He came out looking like he was hiding something large under his arm, since his left arm was limp by his side. Yoshikawa stepped back, and wished the four good luck.

When the four had put themselves in a circle and held hands, Arin lightly stepped in the middle of the group, and raised her right hand. She flicked her wrist, and a blue magic circle appeared underneath them, glowing with a bright light. The light eventually grew blinding, forcing everyone to close their eyes.

 _Somewhere outside of known time and space-Arin's dimension_

The five people appeared in a library-like room, polished mahogany bookshelves lining the walls. The floor was made of what looked like semitransparent glass tiles, alternating silver and metallic green in colour. The walls were made of highly reflective and polished silver metal.

Shizuka immediately broke away from the circle to walk around the place, entranced by the sheer otherworldly appearance of it. Last Order followed suit, running around and admiring everything. Izumi and Accelerator stood quietly, turning their heads from side to side, observing without a sound.  
"Do you like my dimension? I can change the place up if you guys want. And don't try reading the books; they're only there for decoration. There's nothing in them." Arin's appearance had changed when they had teleported to her dimension. She was around Shizuka's height now, and looked her age as well. Her long waist-length silver hair was shortened so it fell just past her shoulders, and her sleeveless dress was now white with blue accents on the edges. She was still barefoot.

"Whoa, you look a whole lot different now, Arin."

"I prefer the little girl form on Earth, but I like this form as well. Again, do you want me to change this place?"

The other four shook their heads, opting to explore the place more. Accelerator started to walk around, trailing his fingers against the cool wall, which left behind silvery imprints before disappearing. Izumi walked around, taking notes on a notebook that hovered in front of him. Shizuka had started examining the various substances and metals Arin had used to construct the place, obviously not earth-made. Last Order was running excitedly from bookshelf to window, gasping in awe at the view outside.

"'What's outside?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA tries to figure out the phenomenon."

Accelerator and Shizuka joined Last Order at the window, the former trying extremely hard to keep an apathetic face and the latter with a look of awe on her face. Izumi glanced outside, and started to furiously take notes again.

"Why don't you go outside and check? Oh, by the way, you have 5 minutes. Two hours have already passed on Earth."

Immediately the trio ran outside the door that had appeared out of nowhere, the older magician slowly strolling out after them.

Outside of the library was a place that would have never existed on Earth. A meadow lined with grass and tiny wildflowers made out of spun glass and hardened resin extended far beyond where the eye could see. The sun had a bright glow that splashed warm golden light everywhere on the ground. The endless bright blue sky was also tinged with gold.

"It's so pretty," breathed Shizuka.  
"'MISAKA won't ever forget this sight,' says MISAKA as MISAKA tries to remember everything."

"I modeled this place on an earth that could have existed, one that was never affected by pollution. Take a good look; this may be the first and last time you guys will ever see this place. And yes, you can bring back some flowers, Last Order."

Accelerator watched the two girls play while studying the surroundings and noting the differences from Earth. His thoughts were broken when Arin called him over. "What did you need me for, Arin?"

"My spell just sensed someone." Snapping her fingers, a small square of transparent glass appeared in her hand. Glancing at it, Accelerator was surprised to see a few figures displayed in the glass, standing in front of the building he had designated for meeting up. Narrowing his eyes, he studied the figures.

"Is that third-rate and her friends?"

The others gathered around him and Arin. "'Ah, it's Onee-sama!' Exclaims MISAKA as MISAKA tries to hide her surprise."

"She's early," Shizuka commented.

"It's 1:00 pm. Five minutes our time. Five hours have passed on Earth. I'll go greet them." Arin flicked her wrist. A door that looked like it was made of pure silver appeared in the clearing, with a timer above its head. "You are free to leave and go to the abandoned lab right now with me, or you can wait until the timer reaches zero. When that happens, you will be forcibly transported out. By the way, I've changed the time so it's synchronized with Earth time." With a wave, Arin disappeared, not before changing back to her little girl form.

"Two hours. I say we leave now so our guests won't get bored and leave, even if Arin is going to greet them. What do you think, Accelerator?"

"Don't care."

"'MISAKA wants to see Onee-sama,' says MISAKA as MISAKA voices her opinion."

"Last Order, didn't Kikyou tell you something?" Last Order stared at Izumi uncomprehendingly for a second, and then her eyes lit up. She nodded, and Izumi reached his hand into his clothes and took out two boxes. "Finally I can take these out. Do you know how uncomfortable it was to stick two boxes under one arm for such a long time?"

"What are these?" Accelerator and Shizuka asked simultaneously.

"Very, very late birthday presents. It was a group work. Last Order had one hell of a time keeping quiet. Well, go on, Last Order. Don't you want to give them?"

Last Order nodded, giving one box to Shizuka and one to Accelerator. The duo opened their boxes at the same time, eyes widening with surprise as they held up identical jet-black cloaks.

"What's the need for a cloak?"

Izumi held up a hand. "No protests. These cloaks were made with a blend of Academy City technology and magic. The magic part of the cloak lets you become one with the shadows, like my cloak. You can also become invisible in clear daytime without a spell. The science part is the fact that it is pretty much impenetrable, like some metals. Kikyou and Aiho spent a long time trying to get the material. Last Order helped with the personalization. Since we were all kind of busy, we couldn't make individual presents, but you two deserved presents. Happy belated."

"'Happy belated birthday, Accelerator and Shizuka! Says MISAKA as MISAKA finally says the message she wanted to say for a long time."

"Thanks a lot," the two said simultaneously. Shizuka turned the cloak over in her hands, noting the swirling S crookedly stitched onto on the hem of the cloak. Nudging Accelerator, she pointed out the A on his cloak.

"Hey Last Order, did you do this? It's great!"

"Good job, brat."

Last Order smiled shyly and nodded. She suddenly jumped forward and gave both a hug. Surprised, both teens had no choice but to return it. She broke away and asked: "'Can Accelerator and Shizuka put on their cloaks now? MISAKA wants to see how they look,' says MISAKA as MISAKA makes a request."

The teens glanced at each other, shrugged, and put the cloaks on. While Shizuka kept the hood off, letting her hair flow freely behind her shoulders, Accelerator put on the hood on, completely concealing his face.

Izumi studied the two. "Not bad, not bad. Come on, we should go now."

"Agreed."

The four stepped one by one through the open door, finding themselves in the middle of a hallway in the building.

 _In front of the lab-minutes before the four come back to Earth_

"Onee-sama, are you sure this is the place? It looks like no one is here yet."

"Kuroko, my sense of direction isn't that bad." Misaka Mikoto checked the address again, and then looked at the abandoned laboratory in front of her and her three friends. "Seriously, of all the nicer places, he has to choose a place that looks almost like a haunted house," she muttered under her breath.

"This place gives me a creepy feeling. What do you think, Uiharu?" Saten Ruiko looked up at the large, decrepit building, shivering. "I saw this rumour that whoever enters an abandoned laboratory would disappear and never come out again."

"Geez, Saten-san! Don't scare us all with these stories again!"

"What stories?" A new voice interrupted. All four girls whipped their heads to the entrance of the door to see a silver-haired barefoot young girl in a silky dress. She had a look of amusement on her young face. "I assure you, you will be stepping out of this place when we are done." Her head then turned to Misaka, a disapproving look now on her face. "Railgun, I thought I told you to come alone. Now everything's going to be more complicated, and they're not going to be happy."

"Don't blame Onee-sama, we insisted on coming since someone has to protect her purity."

"H-hey! What the hell are you talking about, Kuroko?!"

Saten ignored the start of another argument and turned to the girl. "Who are you and who are you talking about when you said 'they'?"

"My name is Arin. I was the messenger that gave Railgun her message to come here. Specifically, it was supposed to be Level Fives exclusive, but apparently she broke the rules. You'll find out who I'm talking about soon enough." Turning to the still-squabbling duo, Arin clapped her hands sharply and suddenly, no voice came out of their mouths. Misaka tried to yell or shout, but nothing came out of her open mouth. Shirai followed suit and got the same results. They glared at Arin, waving their hands around and pointing at their throats. Arin rolled her eyes. "I'm keeping that silence spell on you two until we get inside. I'm not human, but your arguing was enough to give even me a headache." Turning on her heel, she marched into the building, making a quick motion for the others to join her, all in various states of shock.

 _Open area_

"Where did Arin say to meet her?" After walking out of the hallway, Accelerator, Shizuka, Last Order and Izumi found themselves in a large open area. It looked like a cross between a boardroom and a training area. There were tables and chairs scattered across the place, and there was a section set away that looked like some kind of mini-amphitheatre.

Accelerator turned to Izumi, shrugging. The expression on his face was hidden behind the cloak. "Arin said nothing. I'll just call her to come here." He fell silent after that, presumably communicating with Arin via telepathy.

Soon enough, they heard echoing footsteps approach the area. Last Order started fidgeting, obviously excited to see Misaka, but Shizuka gently put her hands on the young girl's shoulders. The message was subtle: do not move. After a few more seconds, Arin stepped lightly into the room, immediately disappearing and reappeared by Accelerator's side. Four girls walked in. One was obviously Misaka. He guessed the others were her friends. Two were obviously somewhat shell-shocked, as they said nothing, staring at the scene in front of them.

"Third-rate. I thought I specified _not_ to bring anyone." Since his hood was still up, the girl had no idea who he was. She said nothing, however, pointing at her throat. Accelerator turned his head to Arin. "What's up with third-rate?"

"She talked too much. A simple silencing spell does wonders."

"As much as I hate to say it, take it off her."

"Fine." Arin flicked her right wrist, and suddenly Misaka was able to talk again.

"What the hell was that for?"

"Again, I said you talked way too much. To minimalize sound, I'm keeping that spell on that friend of yours. Shirai Kuroko, right?"

"Take the spell or whatever you called it off Kuroko!"

"Actually, I'd enjoy some silence, third-rate."

Misaka whipped her head towards Accelerator, apparently not noticing anyone else. "Who the hell are you?" Electricity started sparking around her.

"Who else in this city calls you third-rate, third-rate?" Accelerator drew back his hood, to reveal a pale face, glaring bloodred eyes and a somewhat apathetic expression. "Arin did say I sent the damn message. And seriously, didn't you notice the brat?" Last Order broke free from Shizuka and ran up to Misaka, hugging the surprised middle school student.

"'Onee-sama!' Says MISAKA as MISAKA hugs her older sister!"

"Last Order? What are you doing here?"

"She came with us." Shizuka stepped forward, giving Misaka a friendly wave. "Remember me?"

"Uh...Tsukiko-san, right?"

"Call me Shizuka. Who are your other friends?" While she talked to the Railgun, she sent a telepathic message to Accelerator.

 _Can't you refrain from annoying her?_

 _No way in hell. She gets mad way too easily. I might just enjoy this._

Misaka unknowingly interrupted just then. "Uh, this is Uiharu-san, that's Saten-san, and this is Kuroko." This first two girls shyly said hello, gaping at Shizuka's crescent pupils and silver-streaked hair. Shirai was still glaring at Arin.

Izumi sighed loudly, drawing everyone's attention to him. "Arin, just take the spell off. Just replace it with a conditional one."

"Do I have to, Izumi?" At that moment, Arin really did sound like a little girl.

"I said you could replace it with a conditional spell."

"Aw, fine." Muttering a few words, Arin flicked her wrist again.

This first thing that came out of Shirai's mouth was "Onee-sama, you have a little sister?!"

Misaka suddenly looked very guilty. "Uh...it's a little complicated."

"Why didn't you tell me any of this? Why Onee-sama wh-" Shirai was cut off abruptly when no sound came out of her mouth again.

Saten looked surprisedly at Shirai. "I thought you guys said the spell was taken off."

"A _conditional_ silence spell replaced it, Saten Ruiko." Arin amended. "If Shirai Kuroko gets too loud, the spell will take away her voice. Do not try negotiating with me, Misaka Mikoto. And before you ask, I know all your full names."

"Have you been stalking us?!"

"Yes and no, Uiharu Kazari. I was gathering information, namely the locations of the level Fives so I could give them the message. You three were never supposed to come here in the first place."

"O-oh, I see."

Suddenly, a loud beep sounded. Arin held out her hand, a small square of glass appearing on it. She showed it to Accelerator. He glanced at it, and rolled his eyes. "More uninvited guests with an actual invited guest. Go on, Arin." She disappeared.

"Who's coming?" Uiharu looked confused.

"You'll see."

"Um, what exactly is she?"

"I thought I told you to ask the level 0, third-rate. She's the spirit of a grimoire that I currently possess, which means she has plenty of magic I can use. Yes, I can use magic, thanks to that guy over there." Accelerator dangled the book chained to his wrist in front of Misaka, while pointing to Izumi.

Misaka looked over at Izumi's pitch-black hair, slightly amused dark indigo eyes, pale skin, and did a double take. "He looks almost like you."

"'That's because Izumi-san is Accelerator's-mmph!'" Accelerator had clapped one hand over Last Order's mouth.

"You are not going to tell third-rate anything, brat. Understand? And don't you dare ask anything, third-rate."

Last Order nodded, and Accelerator released her. Izumi had put on an apathetic look, settling down in a chair. "Enough of this tiptoeing around each other. Sit down, everyone. I intend to keep this as clean as possible. That means no blood. Get it?" Everyone nodded, sitting down on chairs. Only Accelerator remained standing, behind Last Order's chair. His hood was back up. Izumi resumed talking. "I'll explain everything in detail later when everyone shows up. My name is Izumi. Just Izumi."

His introduction was followed by silence, and then more footsteps echoed around in the hall again. As a reaction, Accelerator silently moved to the side of the door. Soon enough, Arin walked in, followed by four other girls. Needless to say, the reactions between two certain girls were comical.

"You!" Shirai Kuroko and Frenda Seivelun lunged at each other before crashing onto either side of a blue barrier. Both of them turned their heads from side to side before seeing Accelerator standing beside the barrier, hand out and hood down.

"I thought Izumi said no fighting, pink-hair," his bored voice drawled out. "I have no idea what you and the blonde have between each other, but I'm keeping this barrier up until you two promise to stop fighting." Shirai glared at Accelerator for that nickname, but she couldn't say a word since the spell was working on her again.

"What the hell did you make, Number One? Last time I checked, your ability doesn't do that." Mugino Shizuri stepped into full view, two other girls following her.

"Oh, hello there, Fourth. Call off your blonde girl. You guys will know what's happening after everyone comes. Oh, and no killing third-rate, however annoying she gets. Or anyone else."

"I won't stop Frenda until you tell me what's going on!" Mugino Shizuri shot a green Meltdowner at Accelerator, but he raised his other hand and it was deflected onto the ceiling, burning a perfect circle.

"Succinctly speaking, your help was enlisted in the battle between Academy City and the Roman Catholic Church, or the Magic Side. I won't tell you anything else until the rest of the Level Fives come. Go introduce yourselves or something." With that, he lowered his hand, bringing down the barrier. He resumed his position behind Last Order, moving so quickly it looked like he was teleporting.

With her source of information ignoring her, Mugino had no choice but to hold Frenda back from Shirai. Misaka did the same for the teleporter.

"Now, that wasn't that bad, was it? Although I distinctly remember telling you to not bring anyone else, Mugino Shizuri." Arin stepped in, tapping her foot. Four chairs popped into existence beside the currently occupied ones. "Go on, sit down. Don't worry, the chairs won't disappear."

The four girls cautiously sat down. After a moment of awkward silence, Mugino spoke. "Who cares if I came here alone or not? ITEM has people besides me who can fight."

"Okay, that's true." Arin turned her head to the other three girls. "Introduce yourselves and your abilities. No use in having a meeting if no one knows each other. I'm Arin, by the way." She disappeared.

"Where did she go?"

"Looks like someone else arrived."

"Is she the one who planned all this or what?"

"Hm, no. I did. Although she did send the messages under Accelerator's name. By the way, I'm Izumi."

With that, the others had no choice but to introduce themselves. Just as Kinuhata Saiai finished, Arin appeared in the doorway, two figures in tow. One was a busty blonde with starry eyes in a semi see-through white blouse and a red miniskirt, and the other was a wild-looking boy with a white cape-like jacket and a T-shirt with a rising sun design on it. "Shoukuhou Misaki and Sogiita Gunha. Go on in."

"Oh, you're already here, Misaka-san? If you told me earlier we could have arrived together! I thought we were told not to bring anyone else, by the way." Misaki made a cute pose.

"Did you two not have enough guts to come alone or anything?"

"Shut up, both of you. I don't see you two arriving alone."

"Yeah, but we're both Level Fives, so that doesn't count." That shut Misaka up pretty quickly. Accelerator snickered. Sogiita turned his head and saw Accelerator. "Hey, Strongest! Why didn't have enough guts to tell me to come here yourself?"

"Because I had better things to do than play messenger. Arin told me she got a really funny reaction out of you anyways. Now, all that's left is Second and Sixth."

"I heard my title." A young man with long blond hair and green eyes stepped into the room, dressed in a maroon suit over a red shirt. "It seems like the entire party is here." His eyes landed on Accelerator, and his features immediately twisted into a snarl. " _Strongest_."

Accelerator had his trademark maniacal killer's smile on his face. "Kakine. How nice to see you again." His voice was dripping with thick sarcasm. Suddenly, both figures shot forward at each other, intending to let the desire of fighting each other be released. That was what would have happened, if a large transparent wall shot up between the two, causing them to pause just before they crashed. Accelerator glared at Izumi. "Call off the barrier."

"I said no fighting. Well, fine. I'll let you two settle your differences when everything gets explained."

If looks could kill, everyone in the room would have vaporized. Accelerator had the scariest look on his face as he glared contemptuously at Kakine. The second-ranked esper returned the look with equal hatred, but a stern look from Izumi caused both boys to back off. Accelerator sat down between Last Order and Shizuka, a sullen look on his face, while Kakine remained standing in the same place. He turned his head to the group, surveying everyone with a critical eye. He addressed Izumi. "I already know everyone with the exception of the blue-haired girl, the messenger, and you."

Shizuka introduced herself. "I'm Shizuka."

Arin followed suit, and Izumi introduced himself last. "You guy were called here since your help would benefit Academy City greatly. I'm just here to explain what's exactly going on."

"Where's Number Six?" Kakine gave the group the once-over again. "Don't tell me this confirms that Number Six doesn't exist."

Accelerator studied Kakine, and then a wide smirk appeared on his face. "You're standing inside him, Kakine. _Inside._ "

Kakine immediately took a few steps back, his calm composure breaking and a look of shock on his face. In the space where Kakine had occupied, the air shimmered and a teenager with neat black hair, pale icy blue eyes behind glasses and an amused expression on his face appeared. "Strongest, you ruined my fun. Oh well, that means you sensed my presence from the beginning."

"You came in with Fifth and Seventh. I'm surprised they didn't sense you."

"Whoa, wait a second! Kain, you're the sixth-ranked level five? Since when did you have more guts than me?!"

"Sorry, Gunha. I hate being seen as an oh-so-great Level Five. I really hate the spotlight, so I posed as a level four." Turning to the entire group, he bowed quickly. "My name is Kisaragi Kain. In the database, I am registered as a level four Invisible Phaser. In reality, my ability is level five, Double Concealer. It is almost a Dual-Skill, but the skills are pretty much similar, so they count as one ability. Just like the name suggests, I can create a double myself while my actual form becomes invisible and cannot be tracked, even with AIM Stalker. I go to Nagatenjouki, and I'm roommates with Gunha."

"How could you hide as a level four for so long, Kain?"

"The man who took care of me-my adopted father, was a lead researcher for Capacity Down. He made some changes for one particular device that confuses the AIM diffusion field, causing the level to lower in a System Scan, but their power doesn't change. He gave it to me when the idea to mass-produce it was rejected, but it has proved to be extremely useful for me. And yes, I was a Child Error. One of the fortunate ones, at least."

"So you've decided to give up the level 4 façade?" Izumi looked inquisitively at the esper.  
"For now," Kain agreed. "I'll resume my façade when the battles are over. Right now, I'll help defend Academy City against the Magic Side."

"So you do know about the Magic Side. One less person to explain stuff to. Alright, everyone." Izumi clapped his hands, drawing everyone's attention to him. "Raise your hands if you don't know what the Magic Side is." Sogiita, Frenda, Takitsubo, Saiai, Uiharu, Saten, and Shirai raised their hands. Izumi groaned. "More people, more questions, more complications. Great, why isn't Librorum Prohibitorum here when I need her? I'll give you guys a detailed explanation, but it'll be short and sweet and to the point. Listen carefully. I won't take any more than 2 questions." Izumi gave a short 10 minute talk, managing to explain all the essential details without revealing a single thing about Accelerator or Shizuka. When he finished, only three hands went up. He rolled his eyes. "Fine, I'll answer all three. But only three. You go first, Meltdowner."

"Who exactly are we up against?"

"There are a total of eight magicians. Very powerful. Three necromancers, who can call up the dead. One simulcrist, who can make human-like forms come to life. Only clay and stone, though. One alchemist, who can make his thoughts into reality. Two combat magicians, experts in fighting and weaponry. One elementalist, who can control the elements or air, fire, water and earth. They're all extremely powerful. Next."

Misaki gestured towards Shizuka. "What exactly are her abilities?"

"I'm letting Shizuka answer that herself." Izumi nodded at Shizuka, directing her to start.

"In your eyes, I guess I'd be considered a Dual-Skill Level Five." Most of the people reacted with surprise, but she held a hand up for silence. "In reality, I am a magician who has undergone the Power Curriculum. I was born a magician able to wield the power of air, fire, water, and earth. My parents gave up the magician life before I was born, choosing to move to Academy City. They passed off my instinctive skill as an esper ability. When my parents died, I was taken to the Special Abilities Institute, and later transferred to another one after it was shut down. Through nearly a decade of being locked up and being experimented on, I gained quite a powerful esper ability which was immediately placed at level 5: telepathy. It's not regular telepathy. It's similar to that of Mental Out. I can use mental force to attack. I can also communicate telepathically with people and control them, but the only setback is that I have to make physical contact with the person in order for those two things to happen. To be honest, magicians aren't supposed to wield esper abilities or vice versa since it could kill them, but I survived somehow, and here I am today."

After she said that, two more hands went up besides the last one. Izumi sighed. "If those questions are related to Shizuka, go ask her, not me. Dark Matter. What's your question?"

"Oh, it's not directed towards you."

"If it's anything about wanting to fight Accelerator, I'll let you two fight it out after all the questions are answered."

Kakine had a satisfied look on his face. Accelerator had a gleeful look of anticipation, a sadistic smile already stretching across his face. Shizuka ignored the two, looking at Frenda and Saten. "Hm, I'll let Blondie go first."

"Hey, my name is Frenda! Anyways, how did you get out of the lab?"

"I demolished the place a few days after I got my telepathy. I escaped onto the streets, but they tracked me down and hired mercenaries that used Capacity Down to disable and attack me. Accelerator found me and rescued me minutes after the attack."

"You rescued a random girl on the streets? That's new."

Accelerator glared hatefully at Kakine. "Shut the f*** up, you bastard."

"If both of you don't shut up, I'm putting a permanent silence spell on both of you." Shizuka had her hand up, ready to move her hand into a few gestures.

Accelerator scoffed, shot another glare at Kakine, and put on his hood, keeping silent.

Shizuka turned to Saten. "You had a question?"

"Actually, you answered it during your earlier explanation."

"That's good, I guess. Izumi?"

"No more questions from you guys? Good. As much as I hate to do it, I'll let you two fight, Accelerator, Kakine. I have a few rules though. Don't demolish this place and don't go all out and waste your energy."

Kakine smiled coldly, glancing at the sword by Accelerator's side. "Let's follow the rules, Accelerator. How about a simple sword fight for now? Losing your sword means you lose." Kakine held out his hand, a long blade made out of a white material forming.

Shaking the hood off, Accelerator grinned crazily. "Bring it." He unsheathed the silver sword, unclipping the scabbard and giving it to Shizuka. He held the sword loosely in a one-handed grip.

One second passed. No one dared to move or even breathe. The two had been given a wide berth. Another second passed. Everything seemed to be made in exquisite detail: the fractured light glinting off the silver sword; the strands of hair on each person's head. Both of them knew the one who made the first move would lose.

And in the next moment, the harsh, dissonant sound of swords clashing rang out through the air. Accelerator and Kakine had timed their attacks perfectly to enter battle at the same time. It was obvious that both were on equal footing with each other. Accelerator parried a series of slashes from Kakine, and stepped to one side, feinting at Kakine's left side and bringing the sword up in a silver arc. Kakine spun away, dodging, and the swords met again with a clash. Dealing a series of lightning-fast strikes that forced Kakine on the defensive, Accelerator quickly threw a split second glance at the rest of the group. Everyone gaped at the pair in utter shock. Last Order and Shizuka were busy recording the entire thing. Accelerator smirked to himself.

 _Time to end this with a bang._

He gradually began increasing speed to his slashes. Noticing the change, Kakine also began to speed up, until the two swords were mere blurs. But thanks to Izumi's training, Accelerator was faster and had an instantaneous reaction time. When Kakine made another flurry of strikes, Accelerator stepped back, causing Kakine to stumble slightly. Taking that advantage, Accelerator stepped in past Kakine's guard and neatly disarmed the other teenager, pointing the silver sword at his throat.

"Yield?"

Kakine sighed. "For now."

Accelerator removed the sword from Kakine's throat and returned to his chair, taking back the scabbard from Shizuka and sliding the sword back in. No one spoke, until some clapping could be heard. Izumi had an impressed look on his face. "Impressive, both of you. You two are on par with expert swordmasters." With that, the silence was broken and everyone started talking at once.

"You guys were at it for twenty freaking minutes!"

"How much guts did it take to learn that much?!"

"Amazing!"

"Since when did you two learn how to sword fight like that?"

Finally, Izumi held up his hand for silence. 'I could tell both of you were holding back."

Everyone gaped at Izumi, and turned to Accelerator and Kakine with looks of disbelief on their faces. Accelerator shrugged. "What? He did say I wasn't allowed to destroy the place."

"As much as I hate to say it, Accelerator surpassed me by a lot in sword skills and speed. I didn't use my power to make a new sword and continue the fight, however." Kakine had a look of grudging defeat.

"The fight was awesome though. So much guts!"

Kain hit Gunha on the head. "No use trying to get you to stop overusing that word, Gunha."

"Ow! I thought I told you to stop doing that to me, Kain!"

Everyone started laughing at Sogiita's antics, and the group fell into individual conversations. Izumi and Arin sat back and observed, relieved looks on their faces that the group was getting along well.

As if on cue to break up the chatter, a cellphone rang, the sharp sound cutting through the air. Accelerator slid his phone out of his pocket, flipping it open. Glancing at it, he tossed it at Izumi. Izumi picked up, immediately starting to talk in a harsh language.

"What language is that, Strongest?"

"Hell if I know, Fourth. Sounds like Greek."

"You're way off, Accelerator. It's Latin. A very old dialect, to be precise."

"Whatever, Shizuka."

Their conversation was broken, along with other quiet conversations, as they suddenly heard Izumi growl, his face twisting into a sneer of distaste. A black glove flowed over his hand and into the phone, and they all heard the shout of surprise and pain come out from the phone before Izumi hung up, tossing the phone back to Accelerator, who caught it carefully, holding it like it would explode into flames any second.

"Oh, don't be that paranoid. What I just did won't affect your phone." Izumi's face had returned to apathetic.

"What the hell just happened?"

"Maybe the phone melted into the caller's hand. We're running out of time. It's currently 8:30 pm."

Everyone reacted with surprise. "Last time I checked, it wasn't even 5!"

"The magicians already started their attack with a very subtle, but powerful spell. They've cut off Academy City and speeding up the time, obviously trying to prevent us from meeting up to discuss tactics. They've also put up spells to keep regular people away." No one said anything but Accelerator.

"Who called and how the hell did they get my number?"

Izumi laughed harshly. "Who knows how they got their hands on your number. That was Mathieu di Angelo, the leader of this entire mess in the first place. He called solely to brag, claiming that we were already doomed and Academy City would fall by dawn tomorrow."

"Does he not have enough guts to think we'll fight?!"

"No, more like he thinks espers are no match for magicians." Snapping his fingers, a large screen appeared along with a laptop and a data stick. Quickly tapping a few keys, Izumi projected the maps and the security cameras onto the screen. "I tweaked the cameras so they'd show the magicians only when they enter. The maps will show where they are. Arin, you're in charge of teleporting the espers. You guys can choose who to take down when they appear."

"Give us descriptions of them at least."

Typing rapidly, the magician brought up eight profiles. "Accelerator already chose to fight Mathieu di Angelo, who is an expert necromancer and a recently turned combat magician. Shizuka chose one of the other two necromancers. From what I've observed, Dark Matter will be most effective against the simulcrist. I fought him once and his creations are really annoying, but powerful. I believe Mugino Shizuri has a good chance against the elementalist. Actually, you two are effective for both magicians, so work it out. Working together, Attack Crash and Double Concealer can take down the entire undead army that's certain to arrive. Shoukuhou Misaki, if you work hard enough, you should be able to effectively mind-control the undead army. You also have a choice to mind-control the alchemist. I suggest the alchemist since he can turn his thoughts into reality, and your mental skills will match that. Railgun, take the last necromancer. I'm taking one of the combat magicians for myself, and two other magicians from the Magic Side will be helping out as well. Imagine Breaker, also known as Kamijou Touma, should also be helping with Index Librorum Prohibitorum. These are the best tactics I can come up with on a short notice. You guys can change who you want to fight now, and talk it over with yourselves. Remember this: the undead army will be everywhere, so be careful. Accelerator, give me your phone again." Izumi pressed in a number, barking out a few orders into the phone. Everyone heard something about breaking the time spell. Izumi turned back to the group after throwing the phone back to Accelerator, but was surprised to see shocked faces. "What?"

"Just how many things are you?"

"A lot of things. Human, combat magician, hand-to-hand combat expert, diviner, tactician, hacker, interrogator, traveler, mercenary, assassin, and a killer." Izumi said all this with a perfectly calm face and voice. "Any other questions?"

"Why can't Shizuka-san fight the other elementalist?"

"Want to know what happened the last time two elementalists fought with each other? Pretty much, the majority of the worst natural disasters that happened more than one thousand years ago were caused by two elementalists fighting. Anything else?"

Misaki raised her hand, looking slightly embarrassed. "I can't defend myself if I'm going to mind-control someone really powerful."

Izumi sat back, pondering. He then turned to the seventh-ranked and sixth-ranked. "Double Concealer. Attack Crash. Go protect Shoukuhou Misaki."

"Okay." Kain didn't look too disappointed. Meanwhile, Sogiita was busy fuming.

"Why can't I fight against the undead army?!"

"I'm not doubting your skills at beating up reanimated bodies of dead people," Izumi snapped. "However, your fellow level 5 needs help. Besides, you won't not be fighting the undead. There's bound to be a lot of them around, so you can beat some up while protecting Mental Out."

"Okay, fine." Gunha had a sullen look on his face. Rolling his eyes, Kain went to convince his best friend some more.

"Any more questions?"

Frenda tentatively raised her hand. "What should we do? You know, the ones that haven't been called?"

"As I said at the beginning of this meeting, it was _Level Fives only._ Well, since Mugino Shizuri has quite a high standard of your power, you can fight alongside her. I'm not responsible for any deaths, though. As for Railgun's friends..." Izumi trailed off.

Misaka gave him a questioning look. "What's wrong with my friends?"

"No offense to any of you, but there's a serious lack of power. The reason I said level Fives only is since all of you possess very strong power, enough to counter regular to expert magicians. From what Arin gathered, I doubt your friends will be that much help minus the teleporter. I'm not being cruel; I'm being blunt. There's a difference. So I won't apologize."  
As expected, Uiharu and Saten both looked offended and hurt. Misaka stood up, electricity sparking around her. "The way you worded it, you were being cruel," she growled.

"As I said before, I won't apologize. And refrain from losing your temper, please." Izumi's dark eyes glittered coldly like black ice. "Unless you prove to me that your friends can defeat Accelerator or Shizuka, I will not let them into battle with you. Listen carefully, little girl. These battles are a series of battles that will test extreme power. Nobody on the other side will care about your friendship with various people. Hell, I bet they'll be happy if they get to kill some people."

"I hate breaking up this feud, but there is something these three can do." Accelerator said. He then muttered: "Someone must definitely be messing with my mind. I'm being way too nice today." Everyone heard him even though he was saying it quietly.

Misaka looked at Accelerator, surprised he would be the one defending her. "What are you talking about?"

"Nothing in particular, third-rate, but I would be less stressed if this was out of my head. Shizuka, go ahead."

Shizuka nodded, rising from her seat and making her way over to Shirai, Saten and Uiharu. Lightly tapping all three on their shoulders, she closed her eyes, concentrating. After a few minutes, she made her way back to her seat, gazing at all three girls. "You understand what you have to do?"

The trio nodded. Accelerator gave them a cool gaze. "If you guys fail this, even the whole of Academy City won't protect you. I don't trust you guys at all since third-rate is as annoying as hell, but for the sake of her not trying to attack anyone in this room, do this job properly."

Obviously put off by his casual tone, the girls nodded. Misaka glared at Accelerator. "Don't threaten my friends. And just what are you making them do?"

"Sorry, third-rate, but that's a secret. In truth, the job is almost not important, but it's important to me. This is better than the alternative, though. Would you rather sneak your friends into the battle to help you, and see them getting killed?" Accelerator noted Misaka's torn expression, and smirked. "Thought so. What time is it, Izumi?"

"11:30. Time is passing faster than I thought. As of now, each second passing is half a minute in our normal time. Accelerator, phone."

Tossing his phone to Izumi again, Accelerator realized that Izumi was calling Touma. After a few frantic words were exchanged, Izumi tossed the phone back. "What was that all about?"

"I asked Kamijou Touma earlier to find the source of the time spell and negate the effects. He still can't find it even with the help from Librorum Prohibitorum. It's hidden extremely well. I also told him he's going to battle the undead army with Stiyl Magnus, one of the two magicians. Time?"

"11:45."

Izumi had a grim look on his face, bringing up a timer on his laptop which showed the current time. "They'll attack at midnight, when the magicians are at their most powerful. Have you decided on who to battle, Level Fives? We'll start with you, Kakine Teitoku."

"Simulcrist."

"Misaka Mikoto."

"Necromancer."

"Mugino Shizuri."

"Elementalist."

"Shoukuhou Misaki."

"Alchemist."

"Kisaragi Kain."

"Defending Misaki-san."

"Sogiita Gunha."

"Same as Kain."

"Good. I'm taking a combat magician and Kanzaki Kaori, the other magician, will be taking care of the last combat magician. Now, it's five more seconds to midnight." Pressing a key, Izumi brought up the security cameras. "5, 4, 3..." He cut himself off as a loud sound of breaking glass rang through the air. It was a familiar sound to some. Misaka had a look of recognition on her face, while Accelerator looked slightly annoyed. Izumi had a feral grin on his face. "Imagine Breaker came through after all. We have an advantage of two more minutes since the time spell was just negated, which gives me enough time to say one more thing."

Everyone fixed their gazes on the older magician, wordlessly passing along the message of inquiry.

Izumi rolled his eyes. "I don't do pep talks. And I rarely give words of encouragement to large groups. All I have to say is this: you will be in the fight of your lives once Arin sends you to the different districts. Each magician out there will do all they can to destroy you and this city. Their magic does not follow the laws of science. Best thing to do is trick them. Be careful and don't attack rashly. I already know one person here will die. Let us hope we can prove the future wrong. Good luck, all of you." With that, Izumi turned back to his laptop, where distant figures were approaching. "It's time." Zooming in on one of the cameras, he examined the group of figures. "Just as I thought. The undead army came first. Behind them is one necromancer. I can't tell who, though. Alright. Arin, transport Railgun to District...8. If you need backup, call Imagine Breaker."

Arin stepped into the circle of espers, slashing her hand through the air. The image of the Railgun flickered, and then disappeared.

"Izumi!" Accelerator called Izumi's attention back to the laptop, gesturing to the multiple figures on different cameras.

"We've got to be quick." Zooming in on another camera, Izumi glanced at the figures. "Arin. District 6, Kakine Teitoku. District 2, Shoukuhou Misaki, Sogiita Gunha and Kisaragi Kain. District 14, Mugino Shizuri, Frenda Seivelun, Takitsubo Rikou, and Kinuhata Saiai. No sign of the last three. Watch out for the undead."

With a few more gestures, all the Level Fives disappeared, minus Accelerator and Shizuka. Arin turned to Izumi. "Should I check if Kanzaki Kaori is at District 1?"

"Take a look but don't linger there."

Arin disappeared, reappearing after two seconds. "She's there, all right. Her opponent doesn't seem to sense her."

"I pity him." Izumi's cold smile chilled everyone. He turned back to the cameras. His smile immediately fell off his face. "Shizuka, your opponent is here. Good luck."

Shizuka nodded, giving Last Order a hug and ruffled the small girl's head. "Be good, Last Order." She quickly gave Accelerator a sisterly kiss on the cheek and whispered some words in his ear, leaving him slightly flustered, although he didn't show it. She gave Izumi and Arin grateful looks. "Thanks for everything you guys have done. Send me over."

"Good luck." Arin waved her hand, giving Shizuka a final smile. Shizuka waved goodbye, and her image flickered and disappeared.

"I'm next, aren't I?"

"No," Izumi said, surprising Accelerator. "For some reason, Mathieu di Angelo has not appeared yet. However, my opponent is. Send me over, Arin. Accelerator, watch the cameras. Good luck, my nephew." Izumi said the last two words quietly, but Accelerator still heard him. "Stay on the winning side, will you?"

Accelerator nodded. Arin waved her hand, sending Izumi to whatever district his opponent was. Once he disappeared, Accelerator took Izumi's seat in front of the laptop. Saten, Uiharu and Shirai watched on, wide-eyed. Last Order, however, ran to his side.

"'How are Shizuka-chan and Onee-sama doing?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA worries about them."

Accelerator scanned the cameras, but they had turned blank. He swore. "I think the fights busted the cameras already. I can't get a read on them. Surprisingly, Second and Fourth haven't destroyed the cameras in their area yet. Shizuka should be fine. She just entered battle."

Arin cleared her throat. "If you guys want, I can do a quick scan of all the areas. It'll be very quick."

"You do that. Wait a second though." Accelerator sent a telepathic message. _Can you set up a really powerful barrier or protection spell to secure the area?_

Arin considered what Accelerator said, and nodded. _I won't take it down. The spell I'm thinking of is designed to keep enemies outside._ _Of course, as the caster of the spell, I can move in and out as I wish. But once you step out of the barrier, you cannot go back in._

 _Fine by me; just do whatever you can to keep the brat safe._

Arin nodded, raising her hands and chanting. A large blue dome appeared and covered the place, causing the three other espers to let out cries of shock and awe. Last Order watched on, amazed. The blue dome settled, and disappeared. Arin turned back to Accelerator. "All set." She then faced the other four people in the place. "Please do not leave this area. It is for your safety. And yes, your job will be much easier, you three." She disappeared after saying the words.

Five seconds later, she reappeared with an unreadable expression. "While I won't say we're currently losing, not a lot of us are winning, though."

"How are everyone?"

"Oh, everyone's up and fighting. You should have waited a while before asking me to check on them. Everyone is equally matched right now. Well, minus Izumi and Kanzaki. They have clear advantages. Shizuka and Misaka are fine. Seventh is having a lot of fun, although I keep hearing him yell 'guts'."

Accelerator snickered. "He'll never stop overusing that word." His expression turned serious again as he glanced at the cameras. "I don't get why my opponent's not here yet. Something's up."

"He's probably wondering why you're not on the battlefield. Or maybe he'll show up once his underlings have been taken care of."

"That's a possible idea."

"For now, we can only bide our time."

The two watched the screen silently, the three other girls looking on quietly at the scenes of intense battle.

 _Outside Academy City_

Inside a small house, one man watched a small screen, which displayed numerous battles at the same time. He sighed and looked outside the window.

"I do not see my opponent." The voice was an emotionless smooth baritone voice, tinged with the merest hint of disappointment. He unconsciously rubbed his burnt left hand where the phone had melted into it earlier. It had healed already, but the pain was still lingering.

A dark voice resounded throughout the man's head. _Michael is clever. He knows I am here, so he is shielding his host's presence from my eyes._

"I thought he'd at least be out on the streets looking for me."

 _Perhaps he is waiting for you to make an appearance._

"It's not my nature to enter battle as one of the first people. The ones who hang back are the ones who survive."

The dark voice seemed to chuckle. _Yes, but have you not already sent your seven fellow comrades forward? It is about time you make an appearance. I am getting impatient._

"Oh, just wait a little longer. I intend to appear when all the smaller skirmishes are over, so everyone can see this once-in-a-lifetime fight between two archangels."

 _A good idea. I suppose I can wait. I have waited millennia to face Michael again. I can wait a few more hours._

The man smiled, a cold thin smile. A shaft of silver moonlight shone through the broken window, illuminating the man's handsome face. His lightly bronzed skin turned an almost platinum-like colour under the moonlight. He had short, wavy light brown hair, intelligent green eyes, and defined features that looked like they were carved out of marble by a gifted sculptor. Some people back in his country had called his looks angelic.

And that was true, for his last name meant "angel" in Italian.

Mathieu di Angelo turned his face back to the screen, his eyes intently watching the battles. "Soon, Satou Ryuunosuke. Soon, son of Satou Tsukasa."

 **Does this count as a cliffhanger? I know the name doesn't sound that good, but I just searched up something on the internet.**

 **Anyways, this story is ending soon (maybe three or four more chapters, 5 chapters max.). I have some other ideas for another TAMNI story. A poll will be on my profile, so please go vote!**

 **CHOICES**

 **A Certain Parallel World-Destroyed (maybe two or three-part story, I'm not sure)**

 **Accelerator thought he'd have a semi-normal life after WW3. He was quickly proved wrong. Along with Last Order and Misaka Worst, he is transported to a different Academy City. But why is this city in ruins? The magic side has razed the city to the ground, and Imagine Breaker doesn't exist. To return to their own world, they must help the remaining espers in this Academy City defeat the Magic Side. Can they get along with the people who look like the ones in their world, but act completely different? No pairings**

 **Only the Memories Remain**

 **Post WW3. Memories: They were the only things that remained. Yet after so many years of no contact, she couldn't recall his face or name. As for him, he couldn't even remember her. He was walking down the road to insanity. They both knew that she was the only one who could save him from the demons inside his mind. But would she? She didn't even know if she could forgive him. Only the memories would remain. AcceleratorxMikoto.**

 **Hope you guys vote!**

 **~goddessofshadows7212**


	16. Science VS Magic, Magic VS Magic

**This seems too short…. In defense, I cannot write about fighting that well, so sorry if you guys wanted to see more action. Also, I apologize in advance if the characters seem OOC. Please read/review/follow/favourite! I have updated the poll choices on the bottom.**

Needless to say, no one was having a good night on September 3. All over the districts, sounds of battle could be heard. It wasn't helped by the fact that hundreds of reanimated dead bodies had taken to staggering around the city. They went down easily, but their bones just knit themselves back together and they would resume their staggering gait down the streets of Academy City. Thanks to the necromancers, a large amount of dead people were making themselves just a general nuisance. The only way to destroy them completely was to either negate the magic that bound them, destroy them completely, or to have the necromancer send the bodies back to wherever they came from.

Right now, only two necromancers were battling, each in control of half of the undead army. Shizuka was up against one and Misaka Mikoto against another. The powers of both girls were more than enough to completely burn and char the dead beyond recognition, but more were summoned.

Shizuka groaned to herself. "More and more keep on coming. This is getting tiring after one hour." She clapped her hands and a large barrier of searing flames roared up around her, completely blocking the undead. The flames were hot enough to melt bone. "Come on and fight me properly instead of hiding behind your minions, you bitch!" Over that one hour, Shizuka had destroyed countless dead bodies and deflected spells, countering with some of her own. She already felt the strains of continuously using magic and fighting.

A female voice came mockingly over the sound of the flames. "Come on now, there's no need to do that. Or are you already out of energy? Too bad I learned how to get rid of flames. Or should I wait until you've foolishly wasted all your magic?" The necromancer said a single word and the flames went out. Yet, when the flames disappeared completely, Shizuka was nowhere to be seen. The woman stepped into the middle of the place where the flames had been burning. "Come out, come out wherever you are!"

Shizuka had hidden in the shadows, using the tricks Izumi had taught her and her cloak to completely conceal herself. While she hid, she took the time to completely analyze the necromancer. _Hmm, from what I've seen, she can negate some of my elemental power. Not to mention she's powerful enough to keep on summoning dead people and not break a sweat. I guess the only option is to get close enough is to make physical contact, retreat, and attempt to take over her mind, assuming I can get past any mental barriers._

While the woman's back was turned, Shizuka noiselessly flew right behind the woman, sinking into another shadow before the woman turned back. "I thought I heard something. Oh well, I need to find the girl and eliminate her before Mathieu gets here. He did say he wanted every single bit of opposition down before he goes and fights. Lazy, lazy. Making his sister and the rest of his servants do the work. I'm giving him a sound beating when we're finished. Wait, I'm in Japan. What was 'older brother' again? Oh, right. I'm going to give _Onii-san_ a _very_ sound beating once we're done."

Shizuka quickly studied the woman's features. They matched the ones on the profiles Izumi had shown everyone earlier. The woman had long black hair streaked with red, and clear green eyes. She swore. _Why didn't I notice it earlier? I'm fighting the guy's sister, Catherine di Angelo. This means she is pretty powerful. I have to make my move now._

Shizuka rose out of the shadow and grabbed the astonished woman by the shoulders, kneeing the older woman in the gut hard and then neatly flipped the necromancer over her shoulder, summoning a wave of water to slam the woman into a brick wall.

Shizuka smirked to herself as she flew onto the rooftop of a tall building. _Too easy. Unless that was a decoy._ Speaking a quiet word, she set up a shielding spell around her and started to work her mind control. Making physical contact allowed Shizuka to connect her mind with the person she touched, and she used that to her full advantage. When she started working, she gasped in shock. _Just how many barriers are there?! Magicians are crazy!_

Shizuka concentrated hard, but her telepathic esper ability was no match for a high-class mind protection spell. She grimaced. _It's true that I can use magic and esper abilities, but I know using them together at once can kill me. Maybe I should have told Izumi or Accelerator. Forget it, I have no choice. Maybe I'll live through this. Sorry, Accelerator._

 **~Line Break~**

"I can't detect Shizuka anywhere. She must have put up a shielding spell." Arin glanced worriedly at the blank screen among all the other ones that were showing battles.

Accelerator got up, obviously intending to go check, but Arin forced him back down. "Let me go, dammit!"

"Shizuka should know what she's doing. Trust her."

"And what if it's a suicide mission?!"

Arin sighed. "If you've never trusted her, trust her now. She can take care of herself. You need to be on high alert for Mathieu di Angelo."

Accelerator slumped down in his seat, his eyes constantly darting to the blank screen. Behind him, Last Order watched fearfully.

 **~Line Break~**

"I feel like I've been bumped down to a minor side character," Kamijou Touma muttered as he touched the back of a dead body with his right hand, causing it to disappear.

"Touma, envy is one of the seven deadly sins. Besides, everyone knows you've been in the spotlight for too long." Index spun around, avoiding the hands of another dead body. "S!" Using Spell Intercept, she caused the dead body to lurch towards Touma, where he promptly destroyed it.

They were heading towards the district where Misaka Mikoto was. She had called them earlier to ask for some minor help and supplies. Being the helpful guy he was, Touma had immediately rushed to the district, followed by Index. Up ahead, he could hear the familiar crackling of electricity, and a voice.

"Ha! Take that, you army of skeletons!" Immediately after, beams of orange light shot through the mass of dead bodies, causing explosions everywhere.

"Misaka!" Touma yelled as he rushed into the clearing where the Railgun was facing off with a blond man with stone grey eyes.

"You idiot! I asked you for help to take care of the skeletons and supplies, not help me with the magician!"

"Oh, who's this? Hello there, Imagine Breaker, Index Librorum Prohibitorum."

"Who are you?"

The man gave an elegant bow. "Nicolas Geminus, necromancer extraordinaire. I am your opponent today, or tonight, I should say. Well, Railgun, will you continue to battle me?"

Misaka ignored him and turned to Touma. "Give me all the metal you can spare. Did you bring the iron sand? There isn't enough in this area."

"Yeah, here you go."

Misaka nodded her thanks, turning back to the necromancer. "Go take care of the dead bodies. I can take care of this guy."

The man tilted his head. "You say you will try and defeat me? You haven't even gotten past my barrier spell, or the bodies." His eyes then widened when he saw Index behind him, chanting something. With a sound that sounded like a bell tinkling, cracks formed in front of the man and disappeared.

Index made eye contact with Misaka. "Hurry, Short-hair! This won't last long."

Misaka nodded, electricity crackling off her as she immediately prepared her attacks.

 **~Line Break~**

"AMAZING PUNCH!" Sogiita Gunha destroyed yet another group of dead bodies with a single punch, which was pretty much what he was doing for the past hour.

Around him, skeletons were trying to attack Kisaragi Kain, but they harmlessly passed through his image. A short distance away from that area, close to Misaki, the skeletons burst into flames and disappeared. Misaki yelped as a burning fragment of bone fell dangerously close to her. "Wahhhhh! Kain-kun, don't send the skeletons towards meeeee!"

A voice spoke beside her, the bearer of the voice nowhere to be seen. "Sorry, Misaki-san."

He could say no more, as the alchemist spoke another command. _"_ _ **Suffocate.**_ _"_

Misaki quickly pressed a few buttons on her remote, deflecting the wave of power that was approaching them. "Ah, I'm at such a standstill! This isn't fun!"

Kain's image appeared in front of Misaki, his right hand loosely holding a flamethrower in his hands and his ever-present glasses gone. He leaned down and put his lips close to her ear. "Go circle around to Gunha and get him go defend you from the skeletons. I'm wasting my energy taking care of the small fries. I'll go distract the alchemist and attack him physically. Help me out by using your mental powers. I doubt the guy's that powerful when he doesn't have that commanding power."

Misaki nodded, a grim look on her face for once. "Good luck, Kain."

"Same to you, Misaki." The image of the sixth-ranked esper appeared in front of the alchemist, distracting the man enough for Mental Out to start working on the first mental barrier on his mind.

Kisaragi Kain's ability was an illusion-type, or so the scientists had said. However, they could not explain why his actual body also became transparent and disappeared, becoming something like regular air and being able to pass through anything solid. He could not be seen on any security cameras, nor could his AIM field be tracked. When he used his ability, he essentially became a ghost. Yet, when he attacked, his physical attacks still hit hard. He had also used his ability to acquire plenty of weapons from Academy City's military district, all hidden in case he faced multiple opponents. With that, he could keep the alchemist effectively at bay. Noticing Misaki's intense look of concentration, he saw the alchemist suddenly stagger and press a hand to his temple. Kain smiled and continued his intense assault, putting his complete trust in his best friend and Shoukuhou Misaki.

 _Two more to go,_ Misaki thought as she quickly made her way to an area closer to Sogiita, her mental powers rapidly at work.

 **~Line Break~**

From what Mugino Shizuri observed so far, the elementalist could only control earth and fire. This didn't prove to be too much of a problem for her, as her Meltdowner burned through all of the attacks. Yet much to her irritation, the elementalist could create clones of himself, so usually, her shots destroyed the doubles and not the actual person. Since he wasn't an esper, Takitsubo couldn't track him. Saiai and Frenda were a little ways off, keeping Takitsubo safe and fending off dead bodies that managed to find their way to the area of battle.

"Oi, you asshole! Stop facing us with your pathetic clones and fight us for real already!" Of course, Mugino didn't expect a verbal response.

However, walls of stone rose up around her. Sharp spears shot from the walls all around her. Mugino smirked as she threw up a silicon plate, creating dozens of Meltdowners and demolishing all the spears in an instant.

A slow clap of hands could be heard. "I think I've gathered all the information I needed to effectively take you down, esper." The walls sank back down to the ground, and the real elementalist appeared in front of Mugino. He looked around 30 years old. His straight hair was a dull green, and his eyes were a mesmerizing shade of blue. "From what I've observed, you can only create three or four beams at a time, and they only move in a straight line. You can multiply them with that plate, but even then, they can only move in straight lines. Which means this attack w-" he was cut off abruptly by a blow to the head, courtesy of Kinuhata Saiai.

"All talk and no power at all. Super boring." Saiai violently kicked the man into a nearby wall for good measure, leaving the man to slump slowly to the ground, a dark stream of blood making its way down the back of the man's head.

"I would say thank you, but what took you so long, Kinuhata?"

"Frenda and I were super busy with the dead bodies. Not to mention, all the attacks would have killed Takitsubo if we super left her alone. For some reason, the bodies suddenly stopped for a while, giving me that super opening."

"Hmph, you're right. Some of the skeletons have ceased to fight. Well, what should we do with this sorry excuse of a powerful magician? He's almost too pathetic to kill."

"I super don't care."

"Death it is, then. Too bad I never learned his name. Pathetic." She took one step before a stream of electricity was shot at her. Mugino redirected it without a second thought and locked eyes with the elementalist, who had an astonished look on his bloody face. "Tactics 101 when fighting the Meltdowner: If you use electricity, it's going to bite you back later." With that, she shot three Meltdowners at the man, one going through his head, another through his chest, and the last one through his side. "Well, that was uneventful. Still, what did happen to the skeletons?"

"I super don't know."

"Yeah, it's like someone gave them orders to stop attacking or something!" Frenda jumped into the conversation. "Anyways, what do we do now?"

"Let's go to District 6 and watch the fight with #2. It'd better be more interesting or else I'm killing him instead."

 **~Line Break~**

Shizuka fell on her knees, coughing out some blood. "Dammit," she muttered weakly. With the use of magic on her esper ability, it had caused great stress on her body. She was pretty sure a few of her blood vessels had started shattering. It was worth it, though. She had finally wrested control over Catherine di Angelo's mind, allowing her to give orders to over half of the undead army to stop fighting and stand down. However, since she wasn't actually a necromancer, she couldn't send the bodies back to wherever they came from. After she had taken control, she had unhesitatingly shattered the woman's mind, removing her memories and comprehensive ability.

Forcing herself into stagger onto her feet, Shizuka moved to a patch of light where the full moon shone upon her, allowing her to recharge her energy as she whispered a quick healing spell to stop the bleeding. "I wonder how everyone else is doing. I do know that I'll probably be out for the rest of the night. Sorry, guys."

 **~Line Break~**

It would be appropriate to say Kakine Teitoku was annoyed. No, scratch that-he was irritated. After a while of silent debating, he finally decided on exasperated. For the first time in his life, he was at a standstill in battle. Before, his battles would be won in a matter of minutes. Even fighting Accelerator had quickly ended in a loss for him. However, his battle with an extremely annoying simulcrist was long and drawn-out, and had begun to take a toll on his usually reined-in temper and patience.

"Perhaps, I should have negotiated with #4 to take this little bitch down. The elementalist sounds like a good option now," he muttered under his breath. Noticing one of his giant white rhinoceros beetles suddenly receive a crack on its shell, he repaired it without a second thought.

"Aww, your ability is so annoying! I hate long battles!" The petulant voice belonged to a teenage girl not much older than Kakine, although he suspected the girl was older than she looked. She wore a very revealing dress, and she was guarded on all sides by hard stone creatures.

He was suddenly reminded of a certain girl who always wore a showy dress in his organization. This girl's magic was a creation one, which was very similar to his own Dark Matter. She was limited to statues though, but they were powerful and sturdy enough to take on plenty of blasts from the beetles. He would have gone on the offensive a long time ago had she not countered with a series of spells that completely blocked his Dark Matter.

He sighed, swiping his hand towards her and creating multiple spears of Dark Matter which all locked on towards the girl. "Shut the hell up and die already, you idiot." Finally deciding to try again and go on the offensive, he created more clones out of Dark Matter which surrounded the girl. Kakine himself sprouted six wings from his back and flew at a high speed _away_ from the girl, leaving the clones and the beetles to take care of the statues. The girl quickly caught on and immediately cast a few spells at the clones at the beetles, but they repaired themselves immediately.

Spying an opening, Kakine sped down, wings surrounding him like a protective cocoon. The girl was too distracted by his clones to notice, and he landed right behind her, immediately making a gun of Dark Matter and pressing it to her temple. "Kyaaa! How did you..."

"Shut up. Looks like you're not so powerful without your statues and spells."

"I'll have you know I'm great at fighting!"

"With a gun at your head? Give me a break." The girl tried to say something else, but Kakine spun around to face her and also made a sharp sword of Dark Matter, holding it at her throat. "It's not my nature to kill girls. But maybe you can be an exception, considering you've annoyed me much more than any other person in this world."

Much to his surprise, the girl smiled. "You should be more worried about Mathieu and not me. Well, can't blame you. He hasn't appeared yet, so right now, you guys are stuck fighting us."

"Well, I never expected to fight the guy you're talking about anyways." The girl's smile faltered, but then the smile returned. Kakine continued speaking. "From what I've heard, #1 is fighting him, so I can't interfere. I only decided to come so I could fight against a magician. And I have to be honest: you ruined my expectations." With that, Kakine shifted the sword and stabbed the sword into the girl's chest, which went out her back.

The girl kept on smiling, blood leaking out her mouth. "You may have killed me," she whispered, "but my creations will not crumble. They will continue the fight for me, as indestructible forces." With that, she whispered a spell, golden light flowing from her body to her badly cracked statues. Suddenly, the cracks in the statues disappeared, replaced with new stone.

Kakine cursed as the girl died, unceremoniously shoving her body off the sword and then letting the sword disappear. He created more beetles and clones, but before they could attack, beams of green light shot through the middle of every statue, effectively destroying them.

Kakine sighed and let his Dark Matter creations disappear. "Number Four. Did you have to ruin the ending of the battle?"

"Number Two. Did it really take you that long to kill a girl?"

"I didn't see you arriving earlier, so it must have taken you quite a large amount of time to kill a man."

"At least I have a legitimate excuse of my enemy being able to make clones of himself. You, on the other hand, were busy fighting a bunch of stone statues."

"My creation ability allows for long drawn-out battles, but that doesn't mean I have a lot of patience," Kakine mumbled. Then he spoke in a louder voice. "A creation ability doesn't go with creation magic. As much as I hate to say it, I should have asked you to take care of the simulcrist."

"I don't want to admit it, but you could have been a better choice for the elementalist."

Then the two espers turned their backs on each other, heading in opposite directions. They didn't see the tendrils of black rising up behind them, ready to strike.

 **~Line Break~**

"That was too easy," Izumi commented as he casually threw the body of a man against a hard brick wall. "What, did you purposely lose so you could get thrown around considering I stole your magic? Hurry up and answer my damn questions if you want even a slight chance of surviving this night."

"I...won't...tell...you...anything..." The man being beaten up was the combat magician Izumi had challenged. Izumi had defeated the man within 20 minutes, and spent the rest of the time torturing the magician for information.

"What a pity. Perhaps I'll just kill you now and ransack your brain. I know I'm not the main character in this story, so I'm free to do whatever I want besides foolishly challenging Mathieu."

"Keep...on...trying...you...won't...get...anything...from...me...I...can...survive...a...long...time...of...this..."

"How inconvenient," Izumi mused. "Again, tell me what Lucifer is up to. If you don't, I will cut open your head and literally ransack your brain. _And I will make sure you are alive for every single agonizing moment of it_."

"Okay...fine...for...the sake...of my body..."

"Tch, only took 45 minutes of light torturing to get you to speak."

The man's eyes widened. "You...call...that...light?"

Izumi shrugged. "What? I didn't have the proper tools with me. Now, spill." He hauled the man to his feet.

The man took a few rattling breaths, coughed out some blood, and started speaking. "After all the battles are over, Mathieu will make an appearance, not before taking all your energy and magic so none of you can interfere. Looks like it's starting."

Izumi swore and effortlessly threw the man towards the brick wall again, but with a force hard enough to break the wall, had the wall not been reinforced. He heard the man's spine break audibly, before he nimbly jumped out of the way of the black tendrils.

 **~Line Break~**

"Dammit, what are these?!" Stiyl Magnus stepped out of the way of a tendril, summoning a long blade of flames to hold them back.

"If they touch you, your energy and magic will be drained, but you will remain conscious," Kanzaki Kaori said grimly ad she slashed away some tendrils with her long sword. "I have a feeling the major person here doesn't want anyone interfering with the battle between Michael and Lucifer." She had defeated her opponent in 10 minutes, using the rest of the time to find someone she knew and beating down the skeletons.

Stiyl, on the other hand, had given some espers indirect and very minor magic assistance and had taken care of the majority of the undead, but one hour later, the bodies had stopped attacking, so he decided to meet up with Kanzaki, but he had seen the serpentine tendrils of black just as he reached the district she was in.

"Is that the sole reason to disable everyone else?!"

"Stiyl, you know enemy magicians always have some kind of twisted plan. I wonder if Izumi-san saw this coming, though."

"I barely know him, but he's probably doing the same as us."

"Good point."

 **~Line Break~**

"What are these black tendrils on the screens?" Accelerator leaned forward, eyes locked on the strange tendrils that were popping up on every screen.

"Some kind of spell to disable anyone they touch. It takes away their magic and energy, but leaves them conscious. I have a feeling Mr. Mathieu di Angelo wants to disable everyone, including his own people, before he makes a grand entrance. This is high-class magic that would take me quite a while to get rid of."

"And you're telling me not to do anything again, aren't you?"

Arin started to say something before she cut herself off, eyes widening. She pointed behind Accelerator. Behind her, the three girls and Last Order were frozen in shock. Accelerator turned his head.

Directly behind him was a transparent image of a man who could have been called handsome had he not had looked completely demonic. The man's pure black hair was shot through with streaks of red. His irises were glowing red, the pupils and sclera black as night. Long feathered black wings spread out behind the man, each one tipped with blood. "Nice to meet you, Michael's host."

Accelerator stood up so abruptly the chair he was sitting on flipped over. "Mathieu di Angelo," he growled. He drew the sword, leveling the blade at the man's chest. "Your appearance may have changed from the photos, but I know a bastard when I see one. Do you want to die now?"

The man smiled condescendingly. "Actually, Mathieu just allowed me to borrow his form for a second. I'm Lucifer."

"What the hell do you want?"

"My, how rude. I thought the host of Michael wouldn't be a swearing heretic."

"Shut the hell up, you asshole. Tell me what you came here for, since you're clearly an illusion. I don't see the real bastard himself yet, so what are you doing here?"

"Mathieu wants you outside in 5 minutes. He's already disabling your comrades. If you don't come out, he'll destroy the whole of Academy City with you in it."

The image disappeared just as a silver blade flew through the body, embedding itself in a wall. "Damn bastard," Accelerator muttered. He quickly glanced at the screen and struggled to hide his shock.

The black tendrils had all touched everyone displayed on the screen. One by one, they fell.

Kakine and Mugino were first.

Following were the rest of ITEM.

The next ones were Misaka, Touma and Index.

After that, Misaki, Kain and Sogiita collapsed.

Kanzaki and Stiyl followed them.

Izumi struggled for a second before slumping down to the ground.

Shizuka was apparently unconscious already, her eyes closed.

Lastly, the enemy magicians that were still alive fell.

Accelerator clenched his hands so tightly his fingernails cut through his skin and blood started dripping to the ground. "That bastard..." He growled. He retrieved the blade and sheathed it, stalking towards the door. "I'll do whatever it takes to see him dead, preferably with a sword through his pathetic self or a puddle of blood."

"'Wait!' Cries MISAKA as MISAKA tries to tell Accelerator to pause for a second!"

Accelerator jerked to a stop and turned around to face Last Order, who had already thrown her small arms around the boy's body. His expression softened as he sighed, and knelt down so he was the same height as the small clone. He carefully hugged her back. "Don't worry about me, brat. I'll come back, okay? Just stay put and Shizuka and I will come back. Don't make things more complicated for the rest of us."

"'Promise?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA confirms the legitimacy of this statement."

"I promise." Accelerator hugged the girl for slightly longer than usual, before pulling away. "Don't cause any trouble, okay?" Last Order nodded silently. Accelerator smiled for real and ruffled the girl's head affectionately, which was very out of character for him, but he didn't care. "Don't worry. I'll be fine."

With that, he walked out the door, his back hiding the expression of determination on his face, but deep down, he was feeling slightly guilty. He knew he wasn't going to survive. Even with Shizuka's words she had whispered in his ear didn't help. _I know you'll survive. I trust in you._ He laughed quietly to himself. "You'll be proved wrong, Shizuka."

With a final worried glance at her master, Arin turned back to the small group and started to keep them distracted to stop thinking about the battle.

 **~Line Break~**

Mathieu di Angelo walked calmly through the streets of Academy City, a black sword held in a loose grip in his right hand. His appearance had subtle hints of Lucifer's influence: hair darkening to black, skin paling, and irises slowly changing to a red colour. He stopped when he saw the figure in a black cloak, head uncovered to reveal white hair. The figure's back was turned to him, but Mathieu knew the boy could sense him.

He decided to speak. "Satou Ryuunosuke. How fitting that we should battle right here,"

The boy stiffened slightly. "I don't answer to that name anymore, Mathieu di Angelo. Or should I say Lucifer?"

"I am in full control of my body at this moment. You are too, I presume? And if you insist, I'll call you Accelerator."

"How do you even know my real name?"

"Lucifer knows."

The boy's voice became thick with sarcasm. "And how does he know?"

"You don't know?" The boy said nothing, his back still turned. "This place doesn't even feel familiar to you?"

"Get to the point already."

"This is the very place where your parents were killed by Lucifer himself."

 **Heh, I love cliffhangers. Anyways, I've updated the poll since I decided to replace some ideas for one story.**

 **CHOICES**

 **A Certain Parallel World-Destroyed (maybe two or three-part story, I'm not sure)**

 **Accelerator thought he'd have a semi-normal life after WW3. He was quickly proved wrong. Along with Last Order and Misaka Worst, he is transported to a different Academy City. But why is this city in ruins? The magic side has razed the city to the ground, and Imagine Breaker doesn't exist. To return to their own world, they must help the remaining espers in this Academy City defeat the Magic Side. Can they get along with the people who look like the ones in their world, but act completely different? No pairings**

 **Only the Memories Remain**

 **Post WW3. Memories: They were the only things that remained. Yet after so many years of no contact, she couldn't recall his face or name. As for him, he couldn't even remember her. He was walking down the road to insanity. They both knew that she was the only one who could save him from the demons inside his mind. But would she? She didn't even know if she could forgive him. Only the memories would remain. AcceleratorxMikoto.**

 **The Darkest Secrets Hide behind the Most Innocent Faces**

 **Kisaragi Kanade seems like your average level 4 esper in Tokiwadai. Yet, her name and face are both fake, even her ability. A new member of ITEM, her help leaves the Railgun at the brink of death. Nobody knows why she acts like she does. Except for her brother, the sixth-ranked level 5, Kisaragi Kain.**

 **NOTE: I WILL ALSO BE ADDING SOME MAJOR TWISTS. (Accelerator and Kakine are friends, Accelerator soon cancels the experiment, and other stuff.)**


	17. A Completely Unexpected Situation (?)

**Not my longest chapter, but definitely not my shortest chapter. Ah well, this is the (most epic) fight you've been waiting for (I think?). I think Accelerator's a little OOC…**

 **Anyways, hope you enjoy! P.S.: Poll on my profile, please go vote!**

 _Flashback_

 _"Are we heading home now?" The little boy asked sleepily from the back seat, his red eyes barely open and hidden behind his white hair._

 _"Go back to sleep, Ryuunosuke. We'll be home soon," replied the woman sitting in the passenger. When she was sure the boy was asleep, she turned to the man who was driving. "I'm doubting my own words, Tsukasa." Her golden eyes were full of concern._

 _"I'm driving as fast as I can, Luna," Tsukasa replied with gritted teeth. "Yet, we still can't throw off our pursuer. I'm actually quite surprised. They took four years-quite a long time-to mobilize their forces to kill us and Ryuu."_

 _"That may be due to the fact the Academy City was able to shield us for a long time. Chihiro and Hikaru's influence also helped."_

 _"I'm not talking about the damned Catholics. I'm talking about nonhuman forces."_

 _Luna gasped. "You're talking about angels?"_

 _"More like fallen angels," Tsukasa sighed. "I told you five years ago what I was really here for. I told you that I was pretty much a renegade, an enemy. Yet, you still agreed. Why did you agree to live out a potentially dangerous life by sticking with me? Even Izumi was pretty surprised when he heard that you said yes, and my annoying little brother is almost never shows his surprise."_

 _"Don't call your brother annoying. There are two reasons." Luna absently twirled a strand of lilac hair around her index finger. "One, I love you. Two, I'll do anything it takes to keep the peace as long as possible, even for the future. And of course, I want to protect Ryuu_. _"_

 _She stopped speaking just as a blur of black flew ahead of them and materialized into a dark figure, causing Tsukasa to slam his foot on the brakes. "That's it; I'm going to kill this guy." His red eyes were hard with anger._

 _"Tsukasa, you just said earlier our pursuer could be an angel. And I'm sensing a great power from outside. Going out is not a good idea."_

 _"Fine then. Luna, do me a favour and make the ground collapse around this guy. Just change it into air or something."_

 _Luna nodded, concentrating as the ground two metres in front of them suddenly disappeared. To their surprise, the figure remained in the same place, apparently hovering over the space. "Not working."_

 _Tsukasa muttered a curse, and pulled out his cellphone, tapping a few keys before tossing it to Luna. "Call Izumi. I'm going to do everything I can to keep this guy away from us. Try to keep the car intact._ Praesidium713: A defense for the ones around me! _"_

 _Luna pressed the cellphone to her ear, waiting for the call to get through while watching Tsukasa's eyes and fingertips glow with power as multiple spells were directed towards the figure. Not long, she heard Izumi's sleepy voice answer the phone. "Izumi, we're being attacked in District 8. We ne-"_

 _The car exploded. The blaze could be seen all around the entire district, yet no one came to check the scene, as runes kept regular people away from the place._

 _Abruptly, the flames died down to reveal the black figure completely unharmed. On the other hand, Luna wasn't so lucky. She had used half of her power to shield the backseat from the explosion to protect the little boy. The rest of her power wasn't enough to completely protect her, and she had some severe burns, cuts and scrapes. Slowly rising from her crouching position on the ground, she looked up and gasped in horror._

 _The black figure held Tsukasa up by the collar, a black sword pointing at the magician's heart. They appeared to be exchanging a few forced-out words._

 _Attempting to pull herself over where she could hear, Luna noticed for the first time_ _that her right leg was torn up and bloody. When she tried moving, an intense jolt of pain shot up. She was forced to painfully drag herself at a slow pace towards the two people. When she got closer, she was able to hear some sentences which utterly shocked her._

 _"-by doing this, you realize there is no place on Heaven, Earth, or even Hell that will give you sanctuary? I was actually just waiting for the Romans to track you down, renegade magician." The figure's voice appeared to be a male's voice. Surprisingly, the voice held contempt and both amusement_ _at the same time._

 _Tsukasa attempted to spit in the man's face, but started coughing instead. "You may be an archangel, Lucifer, albeit a fallen one, but I do not answer to you. I had to do this in order to keep you from making trouble again on this earth. You can kill me right now, but I will sacrifice myself over and over if it means keeping Ryuu from your hands until the time comes."_

 _The man laughed a sinister laugh that chilled both Tsukasa and Luna to the bone. "I wasn't intending on killing your little son today anyways. He's already a host for Michael and right now, so he's being shielded from any attempt by me. Besides, this isn't even a sliver of my power. Killing you two today is enough to break down your little boy. Satou Ryuunosuke, was it? I'll break his spirit for the years to come here and now. Time to wake up, Michael's host."_

 _"NO!" Luna and Tsukasa both shouted at the same time, just as Lucifer sent a blast of black energy at the still-asleep boy. Just before it actually hit, a shield of white light sprang up out of nowhere, blocking the black energy from touching the boy, but the recoil from the two forces knocked the boy off his seat, where he woke up._

 _"Strange," the figure said. "That wasn't Michael's full power. Looks like his esper ability has been triggered." He directed a feral grin towards Tsukasa and Luna._

 _"Okaa-san? Oto-san?" The boy asked sleepily. Shaking himself awake, his small face was struck with horror at the scene of his father and mother beat up and bloody in front of his young eyes. "OKAA-SAN! OTO-SAN!" He ran over to his mother. "What happened? Are you okay? What's going on?"_

 _Luna reached up weakly to put her hand on the boy's shoulder. "Run while you can, Ryuu. Go find Uncle Izumi. Just run." Her golden eyes were full of pain._

 _Turning and seeing the black figure for the first time, the boy's face darkened with rage. "Leave my parents alone and go back to wherever you came from!"_

 _The figure sighed. "Quite a noisy little boy when you're awake, aren't you? Maybe this will silence you." In a quick motion, the sword slid straight through Tsukasa's chest and heart, and going out the magician's back._

 _Tsukasa fell to his knees, blood flowing out of his mouth. "Please...Ryuu...run...I...love you."_

 _"OTO-SAN!"_

 _"TSUKASA!"_

 _The boy started to run to his father's body, shock on his face. He turned back...just to see the figure behind his mother. The figure made a quick motion with the sword, and his mother collapsed on the ground, her eyes wide open with shock. She had died immediately._

 _"My job is done for now," the figure muttered. He turned to the boy, who was struggling to keep the tears from pouring down his face. The boy glared up at him with defiant eyes, but he flinched back when his red eyes made contact with the glowing black and bloodred light that came out of the other man's eyes. "Remember this scene forever, boy. Let it haunt you for the years to come until you challenge me, Satou Ryuunosuke. Or should I call you by the name you will use in the future...Accelerator?"_

 _The name echoed and reechoed through the boy's head._

 _Accelerator._

 _Accelerator._

 _Accelerator._

 _"Accelerator!"_

Michael's voice jolted Accelerator out of his trance. As if they had a mind of their own, Accelerator's hands swung up and barely managed to parry the sword slash that was aimed for his head. The force of the blow sent him staggering back, but he had snapped out of the visions of the past. Accelerator hit himself on the head. "No time to be reminiscing on horrific memories," he muttered. He was completely shaken by what he had just seen, but he knew now was not the time to go over what he had just re-experienced.

Mathieu di Angelo stepped back, a disappointed look on his face. "Looks like I couldn't go in for a quick kill while you were busy stuck in the past. This makes it more fun though."

"Bastard..." Accelerator growled. "I'll kill you and Lucifer." He lunged at the smirking magician, sword gripped tightly in his hand, but just before he could land a blow, a vision flashed through his mind.

 _His parents, fresh blood staining their clothing everywhere. His father with a gaping hole in his chest where the sword had gone through, and his mother with a bloody slash at the back of her neck._

Accelerator staggered back, his hand going to his head. In front of him, Mathieu laughed. "I'm not doing anything to you. If I was to hazard a guess, you're currently fighting against yourself. You're being plagued by the past and the memories you were trying to let go of."

As if on cue, another scene flashed through Accelerator's mind: dead Sisters everywhere, him standing in the middle of all the bloody corpses, laughing like a maniac. This time, Accelerator fell to his knees, both hands gripping the sword's handle so tightly that the handle began digging into his skin.

Mathieu gave Accelerator a curious look. "I'm surprised that Michael would take up residence in a person who's been stained with the blood of so many innocents. I swear I'm not doing anything to you right now. Well? Should I kill you now or watch you self-destruct?"

Accelerator said nothing. However, Michael started speaking in his mind. _If you want to protect your current family, let go of the past. If you are dragged down by the dark memories you possess, no one will be saved today. I cannot do much now, Accelerator, but I will help you no matter what. In order for that to happen, you must let go._

Head down, Accelerator muttered a response to quiet for Mathieu to hear.

The said person tilted his head. "What did you say?"

Accelerator raised his head, red eyes burning with defiance. "I said, I can't let go of the past. The past has been the thing that's shaped me into this insane, maniacal monster in front of you right now. I need to remember the past so I won't turn out to be even more of a monster than I was. I may have killed thousands, and have the blood of innocents on my hands, but I have continued to today to pay them back in the best possible way for a monster like me. Even then, I'm still human."

Mathieu smiled. "Well said. But can you still stand against me, considering the past is plaguing you and disabling you to attack?"

Accelerator rolled his eyes. "They were the memories I were trying to forget about, the memories that shaped me into what I was. I should remember what I've done if I want to properly fight the person may or may not have made me into a monster that can't even shed tears for his long-dead parents."

"Good point. Lucifer did start your endless chain of suffering by killing your parents."

"It's not endless." Accelerator stood up, his right hand tightly gripping the sword. "I will end it here."

"Suit yourself." Mathieu mirrored Accelerator's position, his right hand holding the black sword. " _Ruina237: I desire to destroy; long to watch my enemies burn and collapse_."

Accelerator remembered what Izumi had said about magic names: _If a magician declares his or her magic name to you, that usually means they're challenging you to fight to the death._

"Enough with spouting your magic name and all that. Just hurry up so I can kill you and Lucifer."

Mathieu smiled thinly. "A good answer to a declaration of death. Well, I can clearly tell you're at a major disadvantage already. You haven't fully Awakened, have you?"

Accelerator quickly wiped all shock from his face, leaving it blank and apathetic. "You already have?"

Mathieu's smile turned feral, looking just like the smile Lucifer had on his face in Accelerator's memories. "The process for Awakening with a fallen archangel is slightly different than one of Heaven's archangels. It's much easier, though. I went through the process just before I came."

 _Mathieu speaks the truth,_ Michael said in Accelerator's mind. _What he did not mention was that he is already dead. To fully merge with a fallen archangel, one must die fully, and then his body will be brought back to life by Lucifer. Only then can they fully merge, but sadly, Mathieu is still a reanimated corpse. Once Lucifer is done with him, his body will rot and disintegrate._

Accelerator flinched slightly, causing Mathieu to glance curiously at him. "Scared already? I thought Academy City's strongest esper wouldn't be that cowardly."

"More like I'm surprised at how you should know you'll be a rotting pile of bones once Lucifer is done with you, but you're still continuing with this."

"So?" Mathieu shrugged, his once-green eyes fading completely to a blood red colour. "You heard my magic name. In Latin, _Ruina_ means ruin, or destroy. As long as I kill you and see Academy City burning, I don't care if I die. I gladly sacrificed my life for this. Right now, my body is still functioning properly, so I don't care." By the end of his sentence, his hair had fully darkened to black with streaks of red, slowly taking on the characteristics of the figure Accelerator had seen back in the abandoned lab.

"Fine then; I'll just kill you first."

Mathieu started laughing. "Come at me then. Why don't we both unleash the full power of our swords? Then, we can truly fight as the hosts of archangels." He slid his sword back into the pitch-black sheath, which emitted a sickly light. He then held the sheath between two hands, chanting.

Accelerator did the same, although he knew involuntarily that the chant was different. Both chants ended in the same words with one exception though: _"The seal is broken; let neither Heaven nor Hell seal it up again. Let the power of angels/demons be unleashed upon the earth."_ It was easy to guess who had said what word.

With that, both figures slowly put their right hand on the handle of the sword and the other on the sheath. Slowly, both blades were drawn out.

The black sword in Mathieu's hand was so black to the point where it just looked like it was actually absorbing the light around it. A huge wave of power was unleashed from the blade, which was headed straight towards Accelerator. The silver sword in Accelerator's hand had changed to a pure white colour, which was so bright it was blinding. An almost-identical wave of power headed in the direction of the other wave.

When the two energies clashed, all hell broke loose.

First, anything that was made of glass shattered, raining shards everywhere. Afterwards, a huge earthquake shook the area, causing the buildings to creak and sway ominously, a deep roar resounding throughout the place. Yet Accelerator and Mathieu were completely unaffected and untouched. Finally, the roar died down, leaving the two staring at each other. However, both were now floating in the air.

Mathieu's appearance had fully changed by now, taking on all aspects of the fallen archangel. His lightly bronzed skin was now a ghostly white, almost the same as Accelerator's. His irises were the colour of freshly spilled blood, and his sclera and pupils were pure black. His thin lips were twisted in a sadistic smile that could rival any psychopath. Behind him, long feathered black wings sprouted, each feather tipped with blood.

Accelerator, on the other hand, only had a few small changes. His hair was now a pure white, whiter than his original hair, neatly falling behind his neck. His red eyes stayed the same, although there was a subtle change in shade. His smile matched the one on Mathieu's face, however. Instead of wings, four spinning tornadoes acted as a substitute.

"Now then, shall we battle to the death?" The voice coming out of Mathieu's mouth was a mix between two voices: Mathieu's voice and a deeper, more sinister voice that could be identified as Lucifer's voice. The magician raised his sword, beckoning the esper over.

Accelerator's sadistic smile turned maniacal. "Bring it on." He didn't notice himself, but a trace of Michael's voice had slipped into his own voice, making it sound slightly deeper.

And so the greatest clash of archangels in millennia began, on Earth, more specifically in the skies.

 **~Line Break~**

Unbeknownst to Accelerator, the battle was currently being watched by some of the incapacitated magicians and espers. After draining their energy and magic, the black tendrils had placed squares of glass beside each person, and the battle was being displayed on the small screen, complete with colour and sound.

Every person had different reactions. Shizuka, still too weak to do anything, propped the small screen on her knees, silently wishing for a favourable outcome on Accelerator's part. Izumi appeared to be praying, his head down and his hands together, the square of glass by his side.

Stiyl and Kanzaki were busy attempting to recharge their batteries, but their eyes flicked to the screen every once in a while.

Misaki and Sogiita were completely knocked out, leaving Kain to line up all three squares of glass on the ground, his eyes intently following the images displayed.

Kakine had a look of zero interest on his face as he slumped against a wall, too tired to even move. The square of glass was in his hand. However, a white beetle flew away from his other hand a minute later, heading in the direction of District 8.

Mugino and the rest of ITEM were drifting in and out of consciousness, but Mugino was the one who was the most awake, and she observed the scene with an unreadable look on her face.

Finally, Misaka and Index were sitting against a wall, eyes following the action on the screens. Touma sat in front of them. He had negated the magic that drained their energy, but none of them felt like moving. Index appeared to be deep in thought, her eyes occasionally closing for periods of time. Misaka also seemed to be lost in thoughts, perhaps thinking about her friends that were still at the abandoned lab. Touma was trying to rest, but he couldn't shove down the uneasy feeling in his heart that something bad was going to happen, and he knew he couldn't do anything about it.

 _Back at the abandoned lab_

Arin had enough of listening to Shirai moan on and on about how she should have been with her dear 'Onee-sama'. She was just about to cast a spell to silence the teleporter again before Saten called her over.

"What's happening to everyone?" Saten asked Arin.

"Their energy's been drained by something. They're conscious, but they'll be too tired to do anything. Don't worry, everyone's fine." She saw Last Order's hopeful look and sighed. "I don't know about Accelerator, though. He's shielded from any kind of scrying spell. I can still sense he's in District 8. Don't worry. I'm sure he'll be fine."

Last Order sat in the chair Accelerator had been in, her brown eyes full of concern. "'MISAKA wants to see him soon,' whispers MISAKA as MISAKA tries to hide her sadness."

Arin put her hand on Last Order's head and stroked the young girl's hair. "He promised he'd be back, didn't he? Just wait." She then turned to Saten, Uiharu and Shirai. "Do you three want to stay here or do you want me to transport you to where the Railgun is?"

Shirai looked extremely excited, but Uiharu and Saten looked nervous. "Didn't Accelerator order us to take care of the little girl until he came back or else?"

"Oh, right. I'll have you know he rarely goes back on threats." Arin smiled cheerily. "Don't worry, I'll just set up a communication device then. Might as well let Railgun know you three are fine. And don't try teleporting there, Shirai Kuroko. The barrier I put up also prevents travel through any other dimension, including the 11th dimension."

Shirai's face turned red with anger, but Arin snapped her fingers and the teleporter's body froze in place. "I didn't finish my explanation yet." Her eyes looked colder than ice. "Honestly, Shirai Kuroko. Half of me feels like permanently silencing you, and the other half wants to send you to another dimension. I'd appreciate it if you didn't rant on and on about how you should constantly be staying with your 'precious Onee-sama.' But anyways, Accelerator actually did have something else in mind when he told you guys to stay here besides protecting Last Order, since he knows I'm more than enough to keep her safe."

"What is it?" Uiharu asked hesitantly.

"He wanted to keep you guys safe as well, even if he didn't want to admit it. He knows the Railgun would find some way to attack him if any of you guys got injured. He may not look like it, but he does try to keep powerless people safe in the midst of battles." Arin merely ignored the looks on the girls' faces. "Come on, I'll let you guys talk with the Railgun now. The screen I'll be creating will correspond to another screen that appears where she is, so it's a two-way communication."

Arin snapped her fingers again, and another large screen appeared. It was currently displaying Misaka, Index, and Touma. Upon seeing them, Saten and Uiharu called: "Misaka-san!"

The brown-haired girl looked up, her eyes lighting up when she saw her friends. "Saten-san! Uiharu-san! Kuroko! Are you guys alright?"

"Yeah, we're okay. How are you three doing?"

"Exhausted, but alright. Don't worry about us."

Arin stepped in front of the screen, giving the trio a little wave. "Talk for as long as you want. Just don't move. Also, don't touch the screen, Imagine Breaker." She then stepped away from the screen, standing beside Last Order.

 **~Line Break~**

After some time of exchanging slashes and parries, Accelerator knew he wouldn't last much longer. Mathieu's strikes were extremely fast and powerful. He was able to keep up with the astonishing speed the fallen archangel possessed, but the difference in strength was huge. With every crossing of blades, it took all of Accelerator's will and strength to keep the sword from flying out of his hands.

Quickly flying a hundred metres back, he took some time to recover. He hadn't sustained any injuries yet, but he knew his energy was draining at an alarming rate. Remembering the spell Izumi had taught him, he muttered the words and felt his energy return.

In his mind, Michael spoke. _It is true you are at a clear disadvantage, but you have not drawn on my power yet. Why is that?_

Accelerator laughed quietly. "He hasn't used his power. So why should I use yours?"

 _Stay on your guard at all times. I wish you could Awaken fully right now, but it's not possible._

"Oh, stop worrying about that. I know exactly how to continue," Accelerator said. "And how it's going to end. Now, where's the next attack?" Immediately after he said those words, he flew straight up, twisting his body to narrowly avoid the beams of black light that were aimed towards him. Following the beams, Mathieu flew towards Accelerator, sword glowing red.

"Try not to get hit with my sword right now," Mathieu called to Accelerator. "If you do, your very soul will be destroyed."

"Tch," Accelerator scoffed. "You asked for it. Come on, Michael. Give me something good to use with this sword." He could sense a large pool of energy in him, Michael's power, waiting to be used.

A spell popped into his mind, and Accelerator muttered the words. A huge power surged up from within him, and he immediately felt like he could take on anything. The power overflowed into the sword, making it glow a brilliant gold. Swinging it once, he sent a golden arc towards Mathieu. _So that's just a sliver of an archangel's power,_ he mused.

The magician hurriedly raised the black sword to block it, and the end result was a large shockwave that sent both esper and magician flying back.

Accelerator angled to the side to avoid crashing into a building, and then flew up higher. Drawing on the pool of energy, he increased his speed to maybe half the speed of light, searching for Mathieu. He wasn't surprised when the man appeared 50 metres away from him, amusement clear on his face.

"That's more like it now! What's your next move going to be?"

Accelerator merely smiled as the light around him brightened until it was blinding. The light seared into Mathieu's eyes, forcing him to close his eyes if he didn't want to be blinded.

Taking the advantage, Accelerator sped towards the temporarily blinded man and drove the sword into the man's right shoulder, cutting through muscles and bone.

"GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" A scream of pain was torn from Mathieu's throat as Accelerator mercilessly pulled out the blade, now streaked with a dark red liquid. The man's hand spasmed and dropped the sword, but a black wing picked up the sword before it fell too far, and his left hand picked it up.

"Dammit, looks like you didn't lose your sword," Accelerator said disinterestedly as he flew a few metres back, gazing at the dark red wound he had made on Mathieu's arm. "Maybe I should have just cut off your arm."

Mathieu started laughing. "The sword is bonded to me. It will always return to me. That hurt, boy. I'll show you not to underestimate an archangel. Don't get cocky just because you landed one hit."

"I'm sorry, I thought archangels were supposed to be invincible and that no one could land one blow on them," Accelerator said innocently. "I think I overestimated you." Hearing a frantic warning from Michael, he surrounded himself with a strong shield.

A moment later, the area exploded.

Well, not actually. If it were to be properly explained, it was the effect of unleashing a power that was too strong for the earth to handle.

That was exactly what had happened. When Accelerator dropped the shield, he could only stare at the former magician.

Mathieu-no. This was Lucifer. Accelerator could not see or sense Mathieu's presence at all. The figure in front of him was not human at all.

The figure was huge, maybe 15 feet tall. The figure's skin was bone white, dark scars criss-crossing the skin on the wrists and neck. Huge feathered black wings spanned almost 100 metres in the sky. Each feather was tipped with blood. In the figure's right hand, a seven foot long black blade was held, absorbing the light around it. It was barefoot, ankles thickly scarred.

Accelerator decided the eyes were the scariest thing of the entire figure. Sure, he already saw the black-and-red eyes of Mathieu, but the current figure's eyes were a blank black. The eyes seemed to penetrate into his very soul, and burned its image into his head. A thin circle of red gave a hint of irises.  
The rest of the face was the same bone white colour. The thin lips were a dark colour, maybe red or even purple. The lips were twisted into a semblance of a smile.

What he was actually intimidated by was the feeling of literal _waves_ of power rolling off the giant figure. He was pretty sure of Michael wasn't in his body, he would have been crushed on the spot. Even now, he was feeling extreme pressure on his body, and it took almost all his strength to not collapse in midair.

 _This isn't good. You cannot sense Mathieu, can you? Lucifer has discarded Mathieu's body and has fully unleashed a true archangel's raw power on Earth without the limit of a human host. Right now, the earth is being affected by that._

"No way..." Accelerator muttered, quickly glancing down. To his shock, Michael was right.

Academy City's once-tall buildings and skyscrapers had crumbled and collapsed. Even as he looked, the ground rumbled, and the earth cracked open.

"Ha..ahaha...AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! CAN YOU BEAT ME NOW, MORTAL BOY?!" Lucifer's voice sounded at least a thousand times more maniacal than Accelerator's voice. The fallen archangel pointed the blade in his hands at Accelerator. "FIGHT ME WITH MICHAEL'S POWER, HUMAN! CAN YOU BEAT A FULL ARCHANGEL? DON'T UNDERESTIMATE ME!"

"Tch!" Accelerator quickly flew back, twisting and dodging away from sudden bursts of intense power all around him. "Michael, do something! I doubt the spells in the Moonlight Codex will do much against this guy!"

The words of a spell appeared in his head, and he muttered the words out loud, making sure to not say one word wrong while he was still moving around. When he finished, bursts of white appeared around him and started countering Lucifer's attacks. However, the spell took a toll on his body. He felt something burning in him, and he started coughing up blood.

"Gah! What the hell is going on with my body?!"

 _I told you not to rely on my power that much or else your body was going to be affected! Use your vector changing_ _ability._  
Ignoring the burning pain in his body, Accelerator gathered the wind around him, compressing it into plasma. With a large amount of will, he forced the plasma to crash right into Lucifer's chest, which exploded upon contact. A large cloud of dust and smoke obscured his vision, but Accelerator called up winds to blow it away. He could barely keep his jaw from dropping when he saw the end result.

The fallen archangel was completely unharmed. The angel laughed. "HAHAHA! WAS THAT YOUR BEST SHOT? IT'S GOING TO TAKE A WHOLE LOT MORE THAN THAT TO BEAT ME!"

"Damn it!" Accelerator quickly flew a hundred metres back, speeding away from the massive black arcs that were sent towards him by Lucifer, who was swinging his sword around.

And suddenly, the fallen archangel just flew away, heading in the opposite direction of Accelerator.

"Hah? What's going on now?!"

 _Follow him! He might be trying to throw you off!_

Obeying Michael's words, Accelerator increased his speed and sped off in the direction of the fallen archangel, now a tiny black figure in the horizon.

 _Abandoned lab_

The moment Lucifer discarded Mathieu's body, Arin's two-way communication device crumbled and disappeared, leaving three panicked middle school girls.

"W-w-what just happened?" Uiharu stuttered out.

"What happened? Did something just destroy it?" Saten looked surprised.

"I don't know! It feels like some kind of really massive power cut off my magic. Whatever it is, it's suppressed my communication magic."

Arin was lying. She knew perfectly well what had happened when her magic had crumbled. She knew Lucifer had unleashed a full archangel's power upon the earth, and it was taking a heavy toll on Academy City and possibly outside as well, but she didn't really want to tell them that. Only her barrier kept the damage from reaching Last Order, Uiharu, Saten and Shirai.

"'Arin, will everything be okay?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA tugs at Arin's sleeve."

"I don't know, Last Order. I really don't know now. I'll do my best to keep you safe, th-"

A huge explosion cut off Arin's sentence, causing the other four girls to shriek in shock and cover their ears. Waving her hand, Arin blew away the smoke and then gaped at the scene before her.

The abandoned lab was in ruins. Everything around the group of girls was destroyed, leaving the area they were in the only intact place.

But that wasn't the most shocking scene. In front of Arin, a huge black figure appeared, blood-tipped feathered wings flapping gently. The figure held a huge black sword in his hand.

"No way...Lucifer's _here_? Girls, get behind me _now_." Arin pushed Last Order behind her, as she prepared to cast a few spells.

~ **Line Break~**

Accelerator was extremely pissed. He had found out that Lucifer had merely flown in a circle, obviously trying to confuse him. He was now speeding towards District 8 as fast as he could, where he could easily sense Lucifer.

He had an idea of what Lucifer was going to do, and he couldn't let the insane archangel get his way.

He burst onto the scene just as the fallen archangel's sword came crashing down on Arin's barrier, effectively destroying it. He heard the shocked screams of four different girls, but Last Order's scream was one of complete terror. He gritted his teeth. "LUCIFER!"

"Now then, who to start with? And no, I won't let you interfere, Accelerator." Lucifer flicked his wrist and black chains sprang up and dragged Accelerator down to the ground. No matter how much he strained himself against the chains, they didn't budge.

Lucifer turned back to get blasted in the face by white energy, which was followed by glowing white chains. "I won't back down so easily, archangel." Arin spat at Lucifer.

"Oh? A spirit of a grimoire. Interesting. However, grimoires have one weakness. They can be sealed quite easily with the right spell." Lucifer broke the chains quite easily and snapped his fingers. Black chains also sprang up around Arin, pinning her down to the ground.

"Arin!" The cry came from the three girls. Unfortunately, that drew the fallen archangel's attention.

"Hmph. Three weak mortal girls. Not of my concern. I'll be nice and keep you alive." Waving his hand, Lucifer froze the three girls on the spot, but their eyes were still moving around. "Now, for my true target." He turned towards the terrified Last Order. "Hello there, little girl."

"LUCIFER! GET THE HELL AWAY FROM HER!" Accelerator struggled against the chains, trying to use his ability to break free, but it didn't work.

Lucifer spared him a glance. "I doubt you can do anything while I've binded you. This is the most effective way to break you, is it not?" He turned back to Last Order to receive a blast of electricity.

"'Go away and release Accelerator and Arin!' Cries MISAKA as MISAKA readies another attack."

"Last Order! Run!" Accelerator could do nothing but watch on helplessly. He felt a great sense of terror and anger. He suddenly remembered the memory where his parents had died. _Is this how they felt when they saw Lucifer wake me up in order for me to watch them die?_

Lucifer shrank down to the size of a mortal and raised his sword. "Goodbye. This is the end for you."

Last Order, too shocked and terrified to move, stayed in place as if she was petrified.

Time slowed down.

The sword swung down in a black arc, slowly, slowly moving forward to pierce Last Order's heart.

Suddenly, a black-cloaked figure shot forward and knocked the girl away from the fallen archangel, chains still hanging from one wrist. The figure turned...

Time sped up again.

The black sword swung down and pierced straight into Accelerator's chest and through his heart.

"GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Accelerator screamed in pain as the sword pierced through his heart and out through his back. He fell to one knee, blood flowing out of his chest and his mouth.

"ACCELERATOR!" For once, Last Order lost her repetitive verbal tic and cried out her guardian's name. She ran to him only to get stopped.

"Get back, brat. I'm not letting you get hit by that angel." Accelerator's voice was dry and choked with pain. He coughed up some more blood. "Lucifer... I'll make sure you die for that. I won't let you take my family away again."

"I think you're the one who's supposed to be dying." Lucifer jerked the sword out, eliciting another scream of pain from Accelerator before he collapsed in a puddle of his own blood. "No matter, I'll still kill the girl anyways and send you into utter despair before you die."

Drawing on the last bits of strength and Michael's power, Accelerator raised himself to one knee and slashed his hand through the air, speaking a spell in an ancient language just before Lucifer could swing the sword down on Last Order.

White chains sprang up again and blasted the fallen archangel against a wall, binding and effectively trapping him. "Mortal, that spell will destroy you even quicker! And I won't be bound forever!'

"I...don't need...you...to be bound...away for a...long time anyways..." Concentrating hard, Accelerator drew every single bit of Michael's power he had and added that power to the chains, effectively binding the fallen archangel. This resulted in more blood than usual being coughed up. "This...definitely won't...keep you from moving...for a while...as long...as you don't...touch my family..."

When he finished, he collapsed on the ground.

Last Order ran to him. "'Accelerator? Accelerator! Please don't die!' Cries MISAKA as MISAKA desperately tries to revive her guardian." She tried staunching the flow of blood with her hands, doing nothing but getting blood everywhere. A hand grabbed her hand, forcing her to stop.

"Who...said...anything...about dying...brat?" Accelerator tried to smile, albeit painfully. "I'll...be fine..."

"'No you're not!' MISAKA cries as MISAKA tries to find her phone to call the ambulance."

Accelerator gripped her gently by the shoulders and raised himself back on one knee. "Don't worry. I promised you I'd come back alive. I'll just be away for some more time. It's alright." He said no more as the girl buried her face in his shoulder, crying. "Stop crying. I'm not dead yet. I just need to do one more thing, okay? Now let go."

Sniffling, Last Order pulled away.

Accelerator smiled for real. "I'll be back, Last Order. I promise." With that, he used his own blood to draw a magic circle on the ground. Summoning Michael's power again, he let the power flow into the magic circle, making the blood start glowing with a white colour. Stepping into the middle of the circle, he gave Last Order one last look and mouthed three words to the clone, making her gasp in shock before the light grew brighter, forcing her to cover her eyes.

When she opened them again, Accelerator lay motionless on the ground, eyes closed. His wounds had disappeared. He wasn't breathing.

"'Accelerator? Wake up, Accelerator!' Cries MISAKA as MISAKA tries waking Accelerator up." However, the boy still lay motionless on the ground.

Arms pulled her back away from Accelerator's body. "Don't disturb him. The process will take a while. He's still alive." Arin nudged Last Order away from Accelerator's motionless figure.

Last Order said nothing, staring blankly at the boy lying on the ground.

"Hahaha...the mortal boy must have gotten the magic circle wrong...and ended up dying instead..." Lucifer strained against the chains and broke one. "Meanwhile, no one will be able to stop me once I break free."

Arin blasted him with a bolt of silver light. "Shut up, fallen archangel."

"You won't be able to stop me once I break free, little grimoire." Lucifer broke two other chains. "Four more left."

Still, Accelerator lay motionless on the ground.

Lucifer broke two more chains.

A minute later, another chain broke.

Finally, the last chain snapped.

"Now, it's time to destroy you all." Lucifer grew back to his height of fifteen feet, the sword elongating to seven feet. "I'll finish what I started."

Arin stepped in front of Last Order, gently pushing the young clone back. But before she could do anything, a strong wave of power knocked her and Last Order to the ground.

Accelerator slowly stood up, his right hand tightly holding the white sword in his hand. Long white feathered wings sprouted out from his back. Instead of being tipped with blood, they had a golden tint to them. His eyes were a blank white. His white hair was shorter, cut to maybe the length he kept it at before the experiments were stopped. His regular clothing had disappeared, replaced with white armour that was not originated from the earth.

"'Accelerator?' Asks MISAKA quietly as MISAKA doesn't believe her eyes."

The blank white eyes turned in her direction. "Accelerator is sleeping; he will wake soon. He has fully Awakened, giving me full control over his body. Do not worry. He is fine. Stay back, little girl. I would not want you to get caught in the crossfire." The voice coming out of Accelerator's mouth was a smooth deep male tone, which also sounded reassuring.

"Michael. About time you showed up." Lucifer shrank back down, black armour forming around his body. "I've waited millennia to fight you again."

"Lucifer. You have caused too much grief over the past two decades and even now. When will you learn that our Lord has not decreed that the time of the destruction of this place is now?"

"Come on, Michael. I'm not destroying the whole planet. Just this abomination of a city."

"Explain the damage done to the surrounding areas then. I will not let you destroy the Lord's creations."

"Michael, you were always too fond of humans and this sinful place. Maybe I'll change that viewpoint after our fight today."

"I repeat: our clash will destroy the earth, and I will not let that happen." Michael's wings spread to a distance of about a hundred metres. "We will take our fight somewhere else."

"Agreed, considering you're probably going to use half your power to shield this place anyways.' Lucifer flicked his wrist and a black crack appeared. It widened, and Lucifer unhesitatingly stepped in. "Are you not joining me, dear brother?"

Michael said nothing, but flapped his wings once and sped into the crack, sword at the ready. The crack closed, leaving three still-petrified girls, one shell-shocked clone and one astonished grimoire spirit.

 **Uhh….hope you guys liked it? I may have been a little repetitive in some areas.**

 **Please vote on my poll for the next story you want me to write!**

 **CHOICES**

 **A Certain Parallel World-Destroyed (maybe two or three-part story, I'm not sure)**

 **Accelerator thought he'd have a semi-normal life after WW3. He was quickly proved wrong. Along with Last Order and Misaka Worst, he is transported to a different Academy City. But why is this city in ruins? The magic side has razed the city to the ground, and Imagine Breaker doesn't exist. To return to their own world, they must help the remaining espers in this Academy City defeat the Magic Side. Can they get along with the people who look like the ones in their world, but act completely different? No pairings**

 **Only the Memories Remain**

 **Post WW3. Memories: They were the only things that remained. Yet after so many years of no contact, she couldn't recall his face or name. As for him, he couldn't even remember her. He was walking down the road to insanity. They both knew that she was the only one who could save him from the demons inside his mind. But would she? She didn't even know if she could forgive him. Only the memories would remain. AcceleratorxMikoto.**

 **The Darkest Secrets Hide behind the Most Innocent Faces**

 **Kisaragi Kanade seems like your average level 4 esper in Tokiwadai. Yet, her name and face are both fake, even her ability. A new member of ITEM, her help leaves the Railgun at the brink of death. Nobody knows why she acts like she does. Except for her brother, the sixth-ranked level 5, Kisaragi Kain.**

 **NOTE: I WILL ALSO BE ADDING SOME MAJOR TWISTS. (Accelerator and Kakine are friends, Accelerator soon cancels the experiment, and other stuff.)**

 **RESULTS OF THE POLL SO FAR:**

 **A Certain Parallel World-Destroyed: 4 votes**

 **The Darkest Secrets Hide behind the Most Innocent Faces: 2 votes**

 **Only the Memories Remain: 1 vote**


	18. Disappearing (Once Again)

**Here you go, chapter 18! We're almost at the end of this story (cries). I estimate maybe one more chapter and an epilogue before I finish this and start on my other two stories. Go check them out on my profile! I will leave the poll open until the story's done, so go vote and tell me which story I should focus on more! Now, please read/review/follow/favourite!**

When Accelerator came to, he found himself floating in a white void. "Here again?" He wondered out loud.

 _Accelerator. You woke up._ Michael's voice held a trace of relief.

"What happened? The last thing I remember is drawing the magic circle and saying some words to Last Order..." His voice trailed off as the events came rushing back to him.

Lucifer chaining him down to the ground. Watching him swing down the sword to kill Last Order. A sudden burst of strength allowing him to break the chains and push the girl away, making his own body the shield for her. The immense pain of the sword going straight into his heart. Chaining Lucifer to the wall, which served to only shorten his own life even more. Comforting Last Order. Preparing the Awakening spell. He remembered the words he said to Last Order: "I love you." He truly meant the words. He did love her in his own way. And then he had felt himself disappearing into white light.

"Where am I? I'm pretty sure I did the Awakening spell right, so why am I here?"

 _Our positions have changed. You are in my mind now. We are fully connected now, you and I._

"So am I supposed to do anything? Aren't I supposed to see your memories or something if our minds are connected?"

 _Do not do anything. It is my fight now. And no, you cannot see my memories. Even if you are my host, humans cannot comprehend anything pertaining to Heaven and its glory while they are still on Earth._

"Don't get a single thing again, but whatever. Where are you anyways? Aren't you fighting Lucifer?"

 _Lucifer transported us to another dimension so we could fight without destroying the earth. If you want to, I will let you see through my eyes to observe the battle._

"Alright." A thought suddenly struck him. "What's going on back on earth?"

 _Do not worry. The ones that are back on Earth are alright. You carried your burden well._

"What, the burden of knowing I had to die and sacrifice myself for someone else in order to Awaken and get stuck in another battle between archangels who could destroy the whole universe without a second thought? In the end, I think I've only burdened the brat more."

 _You care for her and love her as a father and his daughter. She was distraught over your disappearance when I talked to her after we merged._

Accelerator felt a deep sense of guilt for the first time, an alien emotion."I really left her this time. She's probably thinking I actually am dead."

 _You will be able to return to her soon. Lend me your strength to help defeat Lucifer. This will be an intense battle. Hang on._

"Alright," Accelerator muttered. "Looks like the prophecy was right after all. How did the lines go again?"

 _Sacrifice for another at one's demise, rise again as Heaven's eyes._ Michael intoned the last two lines of the prophecy. _You sacrificed yourself to save Last Order, and you Awakened, connecting with me, the leader of Heaven's army of angels. I suppose you could call me Heaven's eyes._

"I figured out that much. Come on, show me the battle now. I don't want to rush you, but the sooner you kick Lucifer's ass, the better."

The white void dissolved, leaving Accelerator floating in a dark space. In front of him, a wall appeared, displaying a black figure that he easily identified as Lucifer. Right in front of him, he could see two hands gripping a white sword, which he identified as Michael.

 _You are seeing the battle through my eyes. I will do everything to defeat him quickly and send you back to Earth._

 **~Line Break~**

Slowly, painfully, the espers and magicians made their way back to District 8. The absence of the two figures, white and black respectively confirmed their fear and relief. Fear that something big had happened and would affect Academy City. Relief that the destruction had stopped. Yet, the only scene they saw at District 8 was a young girl crying her eyes out, refusing to be comforted by any of the other girls that are with her.

Shizuka was the first to arrive, immediately taking the small girl in her arms despite her injuries, wincing as the small girl threw herself onto her battered body, still crying.

Izumi was next, a haunted look in his eyes and a haggard air all about him. He sat against a wall and stared blankly into space, not responding to any kind of movement Arin made in front of his face, muttering something about a prophecy. He was obviously distraught over Accelerator's disappearance.

The rest of the espers and magicians just gathered in different areas, no one saying anything. Misaka was attempting to help comfort Last Order, but Last Order said nothing and just hung on to Shizuka like a lifeline.

Finally, Arin gave up trying to snap Izumi back to reality and went around to each esper and magician, restoring their strength and healing their injuries, minus Touma since his right hand negated any kind of healing magic. When she finished, she made her way back to Shizuka and stood quietly, not saying a word.

Surprisingly, Sogiita was the one who broke the silence. "What happens now?"

Arin answered him. "Go back to your old lives and forget this ever happened. Although you can help us with repairing Academy City before you do that."

"I suppose I can speak for all the espers here," Kain said. "I don't think any of us can forget what happened this night, whether we were fighting a magician or watching two extremely powerful beings battle."

Shizuka sighed. "I suppose this is where you get the choice of never telling another soul about happened this night or you choose to get your memories erased."

No one chose to have their memories erased. After another few minutes of awkward silence, Misaka broke the silence, asking the question that was lingering on everyone else's minds. "What happened to Accelerator? Where is he?"

At the mention of her guardian's name, Last Order raised her tearstained face. "'He...he...'" She didn't finish her sentence and started crying again.

Izumi spoke, his voice barely above a ragged whisper. "There are many things I neglected to tell you when I called you here. Yes, Accelerator was fighting Mathieu di Angelo, but Mathieu was hosting a fallen archangel, known as Lucifer, a very evil and powerful being who wants to destroy the earth and humanity. On the other hand, Accelerator has been a host for Lucifer's counterpart, Michael since he was born. They were destined to fight from the very start." Izumi went on to explain sparse bits about Accelerator's past and his connections with magic, leaving out the most personal parts. "You can choose to either believe it or think I'm a madman. I swear I'm telling the truth though."

"So you're saying Accelerator is the host for the angel or whatever that was supposed to fight the guy behind all this?" Misaki looked slightly confused.  
"In simple terms, yes."

"So what happened? Did they battle or something?"

"Misaki-san, if you and Gunha were actually conscious, you would have seen everything that happened during the battle on the screen. Although the screen disintegrated a long time ago, so none of us know why Accelerator disappeared."

"I can show you guys." Arin stepped forward and clapped her hands. A large sphere of clear crystal appeared, rotating in midair. The scene on it displayed the scenes from when Lucifer had appeared at District 8, up until Michael and Lucifer disappeared into the crack.

No one could speak. They all sat in stunned silence, the silence only broken by the sounds of ragged breathing. Izumi spoke as if in a trance, startling everyone: _"A child two different worlds shall create; the strongest of the strong, the number shall be eight. Sacrifice for another at one's demise; rise again as Heaven's eyes."_ His voice returned to its normal tone. "The prophecy has finally been fulfilled, hasn't it?" He laughed bitterly.

"Those four lines...a prophecy? It seems more like a riddle." Misaka looked extremely confused.

"Prophecies are meant to be ambiguous. Yet, this one was rather easy to decipher. First line talks about Accelerator, obviously. Second line talks about the Level Fives. There are 8 of you. Accelerator sacrificed himself to save Last Order, which is the third line. He Awakened as Michael's host, hence the term Heaven's eyes. What the prophecy said nothing about was what would happen after that." Arin sat on the ground beside Shizuka, her tiredness finally showing in her eyes. "And before you ask, I know Accelerator's still alive. I do have a connection with him, but the signal's rather faint."

Everyone sat in silence for a while, before Izumi stood up. "We need to repair Academy City. No one besides us knows what happened this night, so it's best if we erased all the evidence." His voice was cold and brittle as ice. "Index. Stiyl. Kanzaki. Help me restore the damaged areas. The rest of you, see if you can clear away the dead bodies and magicians." He stalked off, the three magicians hurrying after him.

"What just super happened?"

"Izumi never took losses of family lightly. He's probably shut himself off from showing any emotions. That's how he usually seems to deal with it. We should listen to him, though. The dead bodies haven't disappeared, nor the bodies of the dead magicians. I can take care of all of them, so you guys might as well return to wherever you live. Thank you for cooperating and helping out tonight."

Touma started to say something, but Arin held her hand up. "No buts. I'm really not in a good mood right now considering my master's gone and disappeared to who knows where. I'll tell Izumi to drop Index off at your apartment, if it's still standing, but she should know to tell him herself. The rest of you, go back to your regular lives. I won't take no for an answer."

"Very well." Kakine walked off first.

The rest of the espers headed off after the second-ranked level 5.

Shizuka sighed and gently set Last Order on the ground. The girl had fallen asleep earlier, tired from the night's events. "Arin, you were a little too cold."

"At least I thanked them. Izumi did nothing."

"I just hope Accelerator's alive and all right."

"He better be, or else Izumi will turn into a total hermit, and I don't know how badly Last Order's going to react. Or even Yoshikawa and Yomikawa. Not to mention I'll probably turn back into a dusty old book without a master."

Shizuka chuckled slightly. "I forgot you were a grimoire. You were so...so _human_ when we first met you."

"I'm sentient, that's why. Come on, help me out. We have to forget about Accelerator for a while."

"I guess you're right." Shizuka took off her cardigan and placed it around Last Order. "What are we doing first?"

"Getting rid of the dead bodies. You really shouldn't have destroyed Catherine di Angelo's mind. That leaves cleanup harder, since she did control over half of the dead army."

"Come on, there were spells about necromancy in the Moonlight Codex. Destroying the dead bodies or at least returning them to wherever they came from shouldn't be that hard."

"Forget that. I need to retrieve Nicolas Geminus and tell him to send his half of the army away." Arin snapped her fingers and an unconscious blond man appeared in front of her, various bruises and scrapes on his body. "He looks like he's in the best shape out of all the other magicians. Railgun's way too nice to kill people. Eh, no matter. I'm killing him later anyways."

Arin grew to her teenager form, grabbed the magician by the collar, and slammed him against a wall, waking up the man instantly. The man was about to speak before a sharp thin curve of silver snaked around his neck, making him freeze up. "W-what?"

"Ah, so you do understand the situation you're in. Since your life is currently in my hands, I'll give you two choices. One, destroy and return the dead bodies to where they came from, or refuse and have your mind shattered." Arin pressed the knife a little harder into the man's throat, drawing a thin line of blood.

The man swallowed. "I'll send the bodies away, so please spare my life."

"Do it then." Arin showed no signs of letting go.

The man muttered a few words, and all the dead bodies disappeared soundlessly. "I got rid of all of them, including the ones under Catherine's control."

"Good. By the way, I lied about sparing you." Arin removed the knife from the necromancer's throat, but before he could react, she mercilessly stabbed it into his heart. The life drained out of the man's grey eyes and his slumped down, dead. She let go of the dead man's collar and snapped her fingers, making the body disappear in a flash of green light. "Well, that just made my job easier."

Shizuka sighed. "That leaves what, seven more magicians out of the eight?"

"More like 5. Mathieu's body probably disintegrated or disappeared to who knows where, I just took care if Nicolas, and you've pretty much killed Catherine indirectly. I should still take care of her body though. Kakine Teitoku and Mugino Shizuri both killed the magicians they fought. Izumi also killed his opponent. I think Kisaragi Kain killed the alchemist or at least left him for dead. That leaves the magician Kanzaki Kaori was battling. She probably beat him down so badly he'd die on his own. Ah well. 6 bodies then."

"Are you sure you want to kill the rest of the living magicians?"

"No use having them run back to wherever they came from and telling their other friends what happened." Arin paused, appearing to be deep in thought. "Well, I guess I can dump their bodies in an active volcano in Hawaii to get rid of all the evidence. What do you think?"

Shizuka held up her hands. "I'm not stopping you. Is that what you did with Nicolas's body?"

"No, I sent his body to the Arctic and buried it in the middle of a glacier. Hopefully no one comes across it."

Shizuka sighed again. "I can't really stop you, can I? Just do whatever you want. Oh, can you also put a sleeping spell on Last Order so she won't wake up in the middle of your, ah, killing?'

Arin nodded and waved her hand over the sleeping figure of Last Order, softly singing a melody. Soon enough, the girl's breathing sounded deeper and more relaxed. "There you go. I'm going to continue now."

Shizuka merely gave a nod, turning her attention to the young clone.

With a few gestures and spells, Arin remotely transported the remaining enemy magicians to a volcano she didn't bother to learn the name of. She didn't care if they were still alive. A minute later, she sighed and sat down beside Shizuka. "I actually can't sense Accelerator that well. I only have the faintest indication that he's still alive and somewhere out there."

"So you can't tell his condition?"

"Yeah. I can't connect my mind with his. I can only tell he is alive, but I don't know where he is, what he's doing, or whether he's perfectly fine or on the verge of death."

"Don't say that!" Shizuka clapped her hands to her ears, blocking out Arin's voice.

Arin held her hands up. "Sorry, sorry. I shouldn't have been so blunt. I'm concerned as well." She sighed sadly again, morphing back into her smaller self and drawing her legs up under her chin, burying her face into her arms. "I wish he would come back." Her voice was muffled.

"I know. Wait, did you tell Izumi to drop Index off at Imagine Breaker's apartment?"

Arin lifted her head, her eyes closed. A minute later, they opened. "I contacted him telepathically to remind him. I also told him I'd repair District 8's buildings. By the way, he told me he wasn't going to go back to Yomikawa's apartment. He's heading straight back to England."

Shizuka looked startled. "That was a rather quick decision."

"I think the loss of his last family member destroyed any last links he had to this place. He might feel responsible for everything that happened, so he probably needs some time alone."

"That's ridiculous. It's not his fault."

"I could be wrong. That's what I guessed when I heard his tone. Even for a telepathic voice, he sounded extremely broken and guilty."

"Didn't you remind him that you could tell Accelerator was still alive?"

"He laughed. Extremely bitterly. And then he cut off the connection. I think he went insane. I doubt any amount of time would let his wounds heal. Even magic can't do anything for mentally shattered people without damaging them further. We've lost him, Shizuka."

"What are we going to do if Accelerator comes back and he finds that Izumi's been mentally shattered?"

"If he ever comes back."

"Do you really not think that Accelerator's not coming back? He'll come back!"

"I can see and sense the doubt in you, Shizuka. It's not that I don't trust him, but he's up against a freaking fallen archangel! Even if Michael's the one fighting, it's still going to be a really brutal battle. He could win at the cost of his life or something else equal to that!"

"He'll come back." Shizuka's voice was quiet and subdued. "He won't come back for me, or you, or Izumi. He will come back for Last Order."

Arin said nothing, but reached her hand down to softly stroke Last Order's brown hair, her head down. After a while, she replied so quietly Shizuka barely heard her. "You're right." With that, she turned away and started to cast spells again, restoring District 8 to its former state.

 **~Dimension Switch~**

Even if he wasn't in control of his body, Accelerator could still sense the intensity of the battle displayed in Michael's mind. With every clash of blades, he was surprised that the dimension they were in wasn't falling apart.

Crossing blades again, both Michael and Lucifer paused to observe each other, white clashing with black, red clashing with gold.

Lucifer spoke in a derisive tone. "Give up already, Michael. You're severely limited in a human host's body, even if he did perform the Awakening spell correctly."

"I am not limited in a human body. The Awakening links us fully and his body will remain throughout, no matter what I do. And how many times must I remind you it is not time yet? I will not give up and let you wreak havoc on the Lord's creation before its time."

"So you let the abominations like these espers exist on the earth?"

"The time to punish the earth's inhabitants has not come yet, Lucifer. When will you understand?" Michael sent blasts of light at Lucifer with his free hand.

"Oh, come on, I told you I was only going to destroy that abominable place." Lucifer flew back and countered the blasts with his own, and locked swords with Michael again.

"And as for ripping a child's family apart and then eventually driving him to near insanity just because he was my host?

"With you out of the way, at least I could have gotten my work done earlier."

"Our brothers would not have stood by idly and watch you wreak early havoc upon the earth."

"Oh, please. They may also be archangels, but you know they aren't on the same level as us." Lucifer flew back again, breaking the locked swords before shooting forward again to deal a series of quick slashes.

"Lucifer, I will defeat you and seal you away until the time comes and make sure this time _you cannot escape at all._ " Michael immediately countered with a series of parries, the blade moving so fast it was a blur. Twisting the blade, he slipped past Lucifer's guard and made a deep cut on the fallen archangel's side.

Grimacing in pain, Lucifer quickly healed the cut and glared at Michael. "You're limited in a human body, even if your skills with a sword are on the same level as me. Why don't you just dispose of him like I did with Mathieu? Trying to seal me away will end up killing your host as well."

 _Hey, why didn't you bother to tell me any of this?!_ Accelerator yelled in Michael's mind.

Michael didn't reply to Accelerator's question and addressed Lucifer again. "I will not take away a life to seal you away. And do you really think humans are that fragile? I shall remind you that Accelerator took your blade through his heart and stayed alive. Every other human would have died on the spot. He is, by far, the most resilient human ever. Sealing you away would not harm him or his body completely."

"Ah, ah, there's the catch. There will be side effects, if you're listening, Accelerator. You'll never be fully human again once Michael seals me away."

 _I was never fully human in the first place. Tell me the side effects after you get rid of this guy, Michael. I'm sick of hearing him ramble on and on._

 _Accelerator, I don't need to seal him away, but it is the best choice. You can tell me to not seal him away._

 _Whatever. As long as I'm not mentally, physically, or emotionally broken or injured, do it. I may be a lowly being in your eyes, but right now, I want you to finish this up so I can return back to my family._

 _Agreed._

Michael's right hand let go of the sword, leaving it gripped tightly in a one-handed grip with his left. In his right hand, another blade appeared, but this one resembled a dagger of some sorts. It was glowing white, with gold runes inscribed on the blade. Even in Michael's mind, Accelerator could sense the raw power overflowing off the blade. It appeared to contain even more power than the sword.

When Lucifer laid eyes on it, he flew back slightly. "You're seriously going through with this, Michael?!" Accelerator detected the merest hint of nervousness in the fallen archangel's voice.

"I am." Michael raised his right hand up straight above his head. The dagger shone brightly, seven distinct rays of light extending from it. The light resembled glowing chains. They all grew to the same length, and immediately started pursuing Lucifer. "I would have done this from the start, but I needed Accelerator's permission, and I needed to make sure you weren't at full strength."

"You...!" Lucifer ducked, dodged, and twisted wildly, avoiding the chains. "You realize when you seal me, you're affected as well?!"

"I know."

 _What's he talking about?!_ Accelerator started yelling in Michael's mind again. _You're not telling me a damn thing right now._

 _Watch your language. I did not think Lucifer would be as reckless as to dispose of Mathieu. If he didn't, I wouldn't have had to use this method. Once Lucifer is sealed away, I will not be able to do anything else on Earth, since he was the catalyst that had kept me on your planet. If you wish, I can still remain in you and help out as you wish, but our current link will be cut off, and we will only be able to communicate via telepathy. You won't ever be able to perform the Awakening spell again._

 _It's your call, Michael. I wouldn't mind if you stayed, but it's your choice. Just tell me everything I need to know after you seal away Lucifer._

 _Alright. And, Accelerator?_

 _Yeah?_

 _Thank you_ _for taking the burden. I know it has been hard for you._

 _I should be the one thanking you. You've done a lot for me._

 _I suppose we both have something we are grateful for._

With that, Michael increased the power flowing through the dagger, and finally, one of the chains wrapped around Lucifer's sword arm, pinning it to his side. The remaining six followed quickly soon after, one pinning down his other arm, two around the legs, two around the waist, and the last one around his neck.

Howling, Lucifer struggled against the chains, but he couldn't move at all. "MICHAEL!"

Michael flew towards Lucifer, approaching with the dagger held high. "I wouldn't have had to do this in the first place if you never came back to the earth two decades ago, brother. Maybe this will let you think twice before escaping before the time comes."

"Michael, you realize what you're doing?!"

"I know perfectly well. Accelerator does as well. Goodbye." Michael flew forward and plunged the blade into Lucifer's chest. The archangel started to speak in an unintelligible language, creating a powerful binding seal.

Lucifer screamed as cracks appeared on his body and spread. Between the cracks, whit light burst forth. Eventually, the body of the fallen archangel crumbled away, not even a speck of dust remaining.

Michael let the blade disappear and flapped his wings, flying around the dimension. "That was a rather subdued reaction from Lucifer. I actually expected more from him when we were battling."

 _Are you saying he wasn't using his full power?!_

"He used up quite the amount of energy while battling you. I wasn't at full strength either."

 _So you're saying a real battle when you guys are at your full power is much more destructive?_

"We were never destined to fight at this time anyways."

 _So are you sending me back?_

"Unfortunately, I cannot right now. Lucifer was right when he said the sealing would affect your body as well. Look." Michael held his hand up in front of his face, allowing Accelerator to see the cracks. "We must return to the earth temporarily in order to get to another place where you can heal fully."

 _My body's dissipating as well?!_

"Not to the same extent as Lucifer. I will heal your body in due time, but you cannot return to earth right now as you are. And there will be side effects, but depending on how you look at them, they are advantages."

 _What are they?_

"I will tell you after you are healed. Look through my eyes. This dimension is falling apart as we speak. We have to leave. Do not worry. I promised I'd send you back. You just have to wait some more."

 _I'm tired of waiting, but fine._

"Patience is something humans these days should learn." Michael held out his hand, and a crack appeared in front of him. It grew in size until it was large enough to fit a skyscraper through. On the other side, the buildings of District 8 were visible.

 **~Dimension Switch-5 minutes before Michael returns to Earth~**

Arin had finished repairing the buildings, and now sat quietly with Shizuka, watching Last Order sleep. Shizuka occasionally drifting off into a light sleep, but she shook herself awake whenever her eyes closed fully. Neither of them wanted to go back to Yomikawa's apartment. Izumi had apparently already returned to England, blocking Arin's telepathic messages as well.

"What time is it?" Shizuka broke the silence.

Arin glanced at the sky. The deep midnight colour was gradually fading, giving way to splashes of purple, pink, and golden light. However, the majority of the sky was still dark. "3 or 4, I'm guessing."

"Do you think Accelerator will be coming back before daytime comes?"

"Maybe. Or time could be passing differ-" Arin's voice got cut off as a crack appeared a few metres in front of them, widening to the size of a skyscraper.

Shizuka immediately picked up Last Order and stepped back away from the crack. Arin stayed where she was, silver light flaring up around her.

From the crack, a figure stepped out, bathed in white light. The figure was human-sized, with feathered white wings spreading out behind it. Yet, there was something very _wrong_ with the figure. Cracks as thin as thread covered the figure from head to toe. It eerily resembled a glass or ceramic doll about to shatter.

The light died down, revealing a tall, lanky, white-haired boy. His eyes were closed, and he gripped a white sword in both hands, the point of the sword pointing towards the sword. Cracks were all over his body.

"Ac...celerator?" Shizuka asked quietly, unable to believe her eyes.

"Wait, Shizuka. Something's wrong," Arin whispered, motioning for Shizuka to step back.

Suddenly, the figure's eyes opened, revealing blank whites. The eyes blinked, and familiar red irises materialized, but only momentarily. The blank whites replaced the red again, and the figure turned away jerkily from Arin and Shizuka.

"What...?" The girls could do nothing but stare at the actions of the white figure.

The figure raised the sword, and made a diagonal cut through the air. Where the blade sliced, another rip in the air appeared, very much like the earlier crack. Beyond the crack appeared to be nothing but a white nothingness. The figure was about to fly in until a young voice made the figure stop.

"'Wait! Where are you going?!' Yells MISAKA as MISAKA tries to comprehend the situation!"

The figure raised his hand and waved, almost like a farewell. A slip of paper fluttered towards Arin, and she caught it. The figure then turned back and unhesitatingly flew into the crack, which closed up immediately.

"What just happened...?" Shizuka let go of Last Order, and the young clone immediately raced to Arin's side.

The grimoire spirit was expressionless as her eyes scanned the note. Finally, she read it out loud. "' _ **It hasn't ended yet. Don't worry. I promised I'd come back to you, and I will.**_ ' That's all that's written on the note."

Last Order took the note and read it over. Her eyes were filled with longing. "'MISAKA will see him soon, right?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA makes sure."

"He will, Last Order. Just wait a little more." Arin put her arms around the little girl.

Little did they know, _a little more_ meant exactly 13 days.

 **~13 days later~**

"No sign of him again?"

"Nope. Not even the slightest indication. I could have sworn I saw him last night, but apparently I was hallucinating again."

"Hey, I know he said he'd come back, but this is taking way too long."

"'MISAKA knows he'll come back, but why is this taking so long?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA tries to find an answer."

Arin, Shizuka and Last Order were walking back to Yomikawa's apartment after another night of searching Academy City for any clues to where and when Accelerator would come back. Shizuka had dreamt one night that he was in District 8, but when she had dragged Arin and Last Order to take a look, there were no signs of the white-haired esper. There was not even the slightest trace that he had been in the district, even if they thoroughly combed every part of the area. During the first few days of searching, Shizuka had even asked Takitsubo Rikou if she could sense and track down Accelerator with his AIM field. Takitsubo had replied apologetically that she couldn't, since she didn't memorize Accelerator's AIM field and would not be able to track him down.

Arin sighed. "I keep on telling you guys, different dimensions have different time speeds. Remember the state of his body?"

"Don't remind me," Shizuka said, shuddering. "I wanted to ask what had happened, but he disappeared before I even tried to say a word."

"Michael probably took him to another dimension to heal. The time there might be faster or slower for all we know. I can't even sense him."

A black van pulled over to the side, slightly ahead of the three girls. Yoshikawa's head poked out of the side window. "Come on in, girls. Aiho saw you guys and decided to pick you up, so we're all going back together."

Once the trio had got in the car and sat down, Yomikawa turned her head to face them. "Nothing again?" Her voice and her expression conveyed a deep sense of concern.

Shizuka shook her head. "I was hallucinating again."

The Anti-Skill member sighed and switched gears, guiding the car through the dark streets. "I swear, he's in for an earful when he comes back..." Her voice trailed off.

The group of females sat in silence until they reached the apartment. When they got out of the car, Shizuka was the first inside the apartment. She stopped dead in her tracks, staring at the living room.

"What...?"

Behind her, Last Order and Arin crashed into her, sending the three of them sprawling to the ground in a heap.

"Ow! What was that for, Shizuka?" Arin stopped speaking as soon as she laid eyes on the living room. "No way..."

"'MISAKA is unable to believe what her eyes see,' whispers MISAKA as MISAKA tries to make sure she isn't dreaming."

"Eh? What's up with you three?" Yomikawa walked behind the three, and her eyes widened to the size of dinner plates when she looked at the living room. "And just where have you been?!"

Sitting languidly on the couch, one leg crossed over another, with one arm resting on the top of the couch, and with glinting bloodred eyes, was Accelerator.

 **Heh. As a writer, I love writing cliffhangers, but as a reader, I hate them. Please review!**

 **~goddessofshadows7212**


	19. Reunion and Goodbye

**Sadly, this is the ending of A Certain Sense of Déjà vu (cries). Again, I must reiterate I am horrible at tearful reunions, but I tried. Hope you enjoy this last chapter! Please review!**

 _Sitting languidly on the couch, one leg crossed over another, one arm resting on the top of the couch, and with glinting bloodred eyes, was Accelerator._

No one said a word. The silent staring contest between the first-ranked level 5 esper and one clone, one grimoire spirit, one magician, and two human women continued without a single sound. No one dared to move or even breathe.

Finally, Shizuka spoke, standing up and stalking over to stand in front of Accelerator. "Just where have you been and what have you been doing?"

"Enjoying death," came the sarcasm-laced voice. "It seemed rather fun, why?"

Shizuka rolled her eyes. "Sarcastic as ever, I see." She pulled him into a tight hug before he could react. "I'm glad you're safe." She leaned down and whispered some words in his ear. "Do you know how much misery you've caused Last Order over these past two weeks?"

Accelerator grimaced. "A lot, I'm guessing." The boy was about to say more before a blur of blue jumped on him, the blur resolving itself into a crying girl wearing a blue dress.

"'You've been gone for a long time,' whispers MISAKA as MISAKA tries to stop crying again.'You're back for real now, right? You won't leave MISAKA alone?'"

Accelerator's expressionless face softened just slightly as he carefully put his arms around Last Order and hugged her gently. "I won't ever leave you alone for that long of a time again. I said I'd come back, didn't I? Sorry you had to wait such a long time."

"You have a lot to tell us about, Accelerator." Arin stepped into the room, her eyes blazing silver with annoyance. "We searched all over for you."

"I gave you guys a note, didn't I?"

"Shizuka and Last Order kept on getting dreams seeing you in Academy City."

"They did?" A note of surprise was heard in Accelerator's voice. "I swear I didn't do anything like that. Must have been Michael or something."

"Anyways, get settled, girls. If we are to hear everything, at least do it while we're all in the home." Yomikawa walked into the room, Yoshikawa trailing after her, the latter making her way to the kitchen.

Yomikawa stood in front of Accelerator, her face an expressionless mask as she stared at the boy she had taken in so long ago. The boy esper stared back, the small girl still in his arms. The tension in the air increased tenfold as the two just looked blankly at each other.

Suddenly, a sharp sound rang out and Accelerator's head snapped to the side, a red mark quickly forming on his face. He stared at Yomikawa in shock. "What was that?"

"That, was for disappearing on us even if you said you'd be back." Yomikawa suddenly pulled the boy into a hug. "And that's for coming back."

Accelerator made no move to hug her back, but his lips flickered briefly into a ghost of a smile. "Missed you too, Yomikawa."

Yoshikawa came into the room carrying tea and a few snacks. She gave Accelerator a small smile. "Glad to see you're alright. Are you fine now?"

"I guess. Michael did heal my body, so there aren't any more risks of it getting destroyed." Accelerator knew this was the only reaction he'd get out of the researcher, so he said nothing else, shifting slightly on the couch to let Last Order settle down in a more comfortable spot, the girl making no move to let go of her guardian.

Arin came over and gave Accelerator a quick hug. "Not going to disappear on us again, right?"

"Enough with the mushy hugs. I'm fine, I'm back, and I won't disappear again. Okay? Now get off me, Arin." Accelerator pushed Arin off him, but he didn't look irritated at all.

Arin gave him a half-smirk. "Irritating you is always fun. Now, I think we all have the same questions in mind to ask you. _What happened to you? Where have you been? Why were you gone for so long?_ "

Accelerator looked pensive for a second before the look shifted to one of resignation. "Fine, I guess I can explain everything. Don't interrupt me. I don't want to make it longer than it already seems."

 **~Flashback~**

 _"This is a place that's going to heal me? Just another blank white space?!"_

 _Michael sighed. "Accelerator, do you want to be healed or not?"_

 _"Fine," the boy relented. "But I highly doubt a blank white dimension will heal my body."_

 _With Michael's guidance, Accelerator had cut a rip in the fabric of the earth with the sword, transporting himself and the archangel to another dimension. He had also convinced Michael to give Arin a note saying that he would be back._

 _Michael held his cracked hands in front of his face again. "I created this place myself. It runs solely on my power, making it the best place for my hosts to rest and heal. Again, you are still mortal, so whatever I see in here, you will not be able to see it."_

 _"That again?!"_

 _Michael ignored Accelerator. Also, in here, I can separate my being from your body." Accelerator's-or Michael's body glowed white, a vaguely human-like shape forming in front of Accelerator. The light around the figure died down to show a blond teenager wearing white robes, white wings extending from the boy's back._

 _Accelerator stumbled and collapsed on the white ground, the strength Michael had given him gone. "I'm going to die without you in my body, right?" He rasped._

 _Michael nodded, his eyes opening to reveal blank whites. "Time passes much more slowly in here. This will work to both our advantages. For the first stage of healing, I'll need to keep you frozen in time for seven earth days, or seven months my time."_

 _"What?!"_

 _"This is to stop the damage from progressing further. This sort of damage is difficult for even me to heal._ _After I remove the time freeze around your body, I will be able to heal you completely with magic."_

 _"Fine. How long is this going to even take?"_

 _"At most, 3 earth months." Accelerator was about to yell something before Michael held up a hand._

 _"At best, 13 earth days. Considering your resilience, I believe you will be fully healed within 13 days. Calm down."_

 _"Tch. Hurry up."_

 _Michael waved his hand and sent Accelerator into the land of oblivion._

 **~Reality~**

"So you were frozen in time for a week?!" Despite Accelerator's words, Arin interrupted him.

"Yeah. Don't ask me how it felt; I was unconscious the entire time. Without Michael, my body would have been destroyed long ago. When I stepped back onto the earth to get to the other dimension, his power was the only thing keeping me alive by then."

"What exactly did you do to your body?!"

Accelerator shrugged. "According to Michael, one of the most powerful binding spells even for the supernatural. If the person casting the spell isn't powerful enough, the spell will also kill the caster, but it's effective enough to seal away even the strongest archangels. That's why Michael used it on Lucifer."

"'So what happened after that?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA requests the ending to the story."

"Nothing much, really. For the next six days, Michael ended up using some high class magic that healed my body fully, but there were a few side effects."

"Like?"

"I wouldn't call them disadvantages. They aren't advantages, though. First off, that magic cut off my link to Michael. I can't draw on his power again unless under very dire circumstances. He can't take over my body. However, we can still communicate via telepathy. I doubt he's in my body anymore."

"So it was a one-time thing?"

"The Awakening? Yeah."

"What other side effects are there?"

"Anything I learned that's magic-related has disappeared. My body's still compatible with magic, though. I guess I could learn again, but I'm limited to maybe a fraction of Arin's magic."

Arin looked surprised. "So you can only use a little bit of the magic I possess"

"Well, yeah. You're still free to use your magic, but I can't use a lot of it. And you should have noticed our link has been cut off as well."

"I know. I don't know how I'm still staying in this world, though."

"We're still connected by a thin thread. But if you want to stay as you are right now in the long term, go make a link with Shizuka."

Arin nodded.

Yoshikawa gave Accelerator a look. "Any more side effects that could affect your normal life?

"My power's increased slightly. From a science perspective, you can say I'm a highly overpowered level 5. You guys should know by now reaching level 6 is pretty much impossible, given the standards for level 6."

"I see."

"Well, is that all you have to say after you disappear for 13 days?"

Accelerator shrugged. "Michael didn't do anything that flashy when he healed me. Besides, it was just a healing process, not another battle." A smirk formed on his face. "I'm quite relieved you guys weren't as emotional as I thought you'd be when you saw me." Immediately after he said that, Arin and Shizuka punched him hard on both shoulders. He winced slightly. "What was that for?"

Arin gestured to Last Order and Shizuka. "These two got all their tears out when you were gone."

Accelerator rolled his eyes but the smirk disappeared from his face. "Calm down, I was joking." His expression became confused as he glanced around the room again. "Where's Izumi?"

"Supposedly in England." Shizuka didn't look into his eyes as she answered.

"Supposedly?" Accelerator's eyes narrowed slightly, his senses picking up the melancholy tone Shizuka's voice held.

Yoshikawa sighed, her hands wrapped around a cup of tea. "According to what I've heard from Arin, Izumi went back to England shortly after you disappeared for the first time. They haven't told me any relevant details, but from what I've heard, Izumi is apparently not in a right state of mind."

Accelerator was stunned into silence. He turned to Shizuka. "Is that true?"

"We suspected it, but some of Izumi's acquaintances at Necessarius have confirmed it. His mind seems to have been shattered by guilt and grief."

"Why is he feeling guilty?!" Accelerator demanded. "He did nothing wrong!"

"He's feeling guilty since he was the one behind the scenes that manipulated you into this life. He's grieving since he lost his last family member. Combined together, I doubt his already-fragile mind was able to handle it."

"I get the grief part, but he shouldn't be feeling guilty. I may have been born into this life, but I chose to go ahead with it. _He_ didn't force me to do it; I willingly said I'd fight!"

Last Order, who had been silent the entire time, spoke up from her place on Accelerator's lap. "'MISAKA thinks if Izumi-san were to see Accelerator again, he wouldn't be like that anymore,' hypothesizes MISAKA as MISAKA shares her thoughts."

"That's a good idea, but there's always the chance Izumi would think Accelerator's ghost was coming to haunt him. That's always a possibility." Surprisingly, Yomikawa was the one who said that. When Accelerator glanced at her, she shrugged. "I'm just trying to think of everything that could happen."

"If that happens, I'll beat some sense into him. It wasn't his fault in the first place. I don't get why he's beating himself up over this."

"He was still trying to heal his wounds from when your parents were killed. He never took deaths of people close to him lightly. When you disappeared, you were likely presumed dead, and that was just rubbing salt into barely-healed wounds." Yoshikawa looked Accelerator directly in the eye. "I doubt it is guilt that is eating away at him. It is mainly grief."

"Well, that's settled then." Accelerator gently picked up Last Order in his arms and set her down beside him. "I'm going to England and find Izumi."

"H-hey, wait! Isn't that too quick of a decision?!"

"Shouldn't you at least be resting for a while? I don't care how much Michael's healed you, you still need some sleep."

"'How are you even going to get to England?' Asks MISAKA as MISAKA tries to obtain the general information needed for travel."

Accelerator merely sat back in the couch, ignoring the females that were throwing questions at him, a calm look on his face. Once they finished, he spoke. "Are you guys done?" When he received nods, he continued speaking. "I want to get Izumi back as soon as possible. Arin, make a link with Shizuka so you won't disappear. After that, transport us to England, or more specifically, Necessarius."

"You do know if you walk in unannounced, you'll be attacked by magicians, no matter who you are." Arin gave Accelerator a look. "How are you planning to get past them?

"There are three people from Necessarius here. I'll go ask one of them for help."

"Looks like you've got all your bases covered," Arin said sarcastically. "Well, if you'll excuse me, I need to establish a link with Shizuka." She dragged Shizuka out of the room, the latter trying and failing to break free of the smaller girl's iron-hard grip.

"What's gotten into her?" Accelerator looked bemused. "I was stating some facts."

"Well, I'm agreeing with her right now, Accelerator." Yomikawa finished her cup of tea and looked at Accelerator. "You are not going anywhere until you get a good sleep and recover from the previous few weeks' events. No buts," she added as Accelerator opened his mouth to argue back. "We will work this out, but I think the girls would be happy with you around for a few days without disappearing on them again."

"Tch." Accelerator was about to speak but he was interrupted by Last Order.

"'Can Accelerator please stay with MISAKA for a while?'Pleads MISAKA as MISAKA gazes at Accelerator hopefully."

Accelerator sighed, but nodded. "I will be going to get Izumi in a few days. Alright with you?" He asked sarcastically at the two women.

"Good."

"Perfectly fine."

Accelerator lifted Last Order off the couch and onto her feet on the ground. "I'm going to sleep, considering that's what you guys are insisting on right now." He stood up and stalked off to his room. Last Order was quick to trail after him.

"Quite the impatient one, even if it's for his family," Yoshikawa observed.

"I'm just glad he's back, even if he's his usual sarcastic, snappy and somewhat tsundere self." Yomikawa was about to pour herself another cup of tea before a piece of paper appeared and covered her face. Once she managed to remove the piece of paper, she saw the words written on it.

 _I heard that. I'm_ not _a tsundere. And enough of the sappy reunion talks. I want my regular life back by tomorrow; with no one commenting on how they're oh-so-glad I'm back._

Yomikawa just smiled to herself, making her way to her bedroom just as Shizuka and Arin reappeared in the apartment.

 **~Time Skip: 3 days later~**

In the course of the past few days, Accelerator was able to track down and contact Stiyl Magnus, asking the fire magician to tell the Archbishop Laura Stuart that he intended to go to Necessarius to find Izumi. Stiyl agreed without too much protest, saying he'd contact the frivolous woman. The archbishop had replied in the affirmative almost immediately, giving Accelerator, Shizuka and Arin permission to visit Necessarius. However, she had told them to take Index along, since the silver-haired sister apparently had to give a report on what had happened over the past month.

After talking with Arin, she had agreed to teleport the four of them to the Necessarius grounds. Last Order wasn't happy that she had to be left behind, but Accelerator managed to placate her by reassuring the young girl that he'd be back as soon as he could.

A day after they settled things with the archbishop, Arin led them all up to the roof of Yomikawa's apartment building. With a snap of her fingers, the four disappeared, on the way to England.

 **~Necessarius Base, England~**

Arin had transported herself, Accelerator, Shizuka and Index right in front of the doors of the church. Without hesitation, Accelerator pushed open the doors, taking the familiar path Michael had shown him in a vision. He soon led the three girls to a beautiful garden, where they saw a woman with long blonde hair drinking tea.

"Archbishop Laura Stuart," Arin muttered under her breath.

As if she had heard Arin speak, Laura set down her teacup and smiled at the group of four. "Welcome to Necessarius, the Anglican Church of Necessary Evil." She locked eyes with each of them one by one, until they rested on Accelerator's red ones. "It's very unusual for an esper to request meeting with the people from the Magic Side, but you are a special exception."

"I guess so," Accelerator said nonchalantly. "Where's Izumi?"

"Straight to the point, I see. I meant to contact Stiyl and have him tell you, but Izumi left for Venice a few hours ago. He told me he had one last thing to settle with Mathieu di Angelo. If you wish to find him, I can tell you where he is."

"And you let him go, despite his mental condition?" Arin looked bemused.

"His mind has fractured even more ever since Tsukasa died, but he is still sane. Although right now, he doesn't speak one word and he always looks like he's haunted. If I didn't let him blow off some steam, he'd be getting worse."

Shizuka stepped forward. "Will you please tell us where Izumi can be found?" She asked politely.

Laura smiled at her. "Of course." She took a piece of folded paper out of midair and unfolded it, revealing it to be a map of Venice. She placed a slender finger on a small moving blue dot. "I put a tracking spell on Izumi so he wouldn't do anything rash. This map will guide you to him. Once you go to Venice, you will appear on the map as a red dot. I suggest you three leave now if you want to catch up to him. Good luck. Please come back here once you get Izumi. I wish to speak to him."

"Okay." Arin led Accelerator and Shizuka out of the garden, obviously intending to teleport them.

Laura turned to Index. "A word please, Index Librorum Prohibitorum. I want you to recount everything that has happened in the past few months."

The short sister nodded quietly, her perfect memory allowing her to accurately recount the past month's events.

 **~Venice, Italy~**

"Of all the places I expected to be in the past few crazy months, Venice wasn't one of them," Shizuka grumbled as the trio appeared in a narrow alley.

"Agreed," Accelerator said as he eyed his surroundings. "Hope my Italian isn't that bad."

"You speak Italian?!"

"Level 5 espers are required to learn a number of world languages in case we get sent somewhere outside of Japan, like America or Russia. That aside, who has the map?"

"I have it." Arin unfolded the map and pointed at the small red dot. "Right now, we're here." She moved her finger to the blue dot, which was moving down a street. "Izumi's there. I'd say we'd have to take a taxi."

"And what if there aren't any taxis?"

"Then let's depend on Mr. I-can-speak-Italian for directions."

"Can't you just transport us there, Arin?"

"I can only teleport to places where I've seen or have been before."

"So how did you know where Necessarius is?"

"Accelerator, I was created and written in Necessarius. Of course I'd know where my home turf is."

"Yeah, yeah. Let's go already. We still need to get back to Necessarius after this, since the archbishop wants to speak to Izumi. "

"The Archbishop seemed nice."

"Quite frivolous. When I was still a grimoire, Tsukasa got the methods from her to turn me sentient. My first impression of her was a giggling young girl who loved drinking tea and antagonizing Tsukasa, Izumi, and even Chihiro. Actually, she loved antagonizing any male magician. She hasn't changed at all." Arin flicked her wrist and her appearance changed to that of a teenage girl, with casual clothing to blend in with the regular people. "Lead the way, Mr. I-can-speak-Italian."

Accelerator shot her a look that could have killed someone before stalking out of the alley.

 **~On the streets of Venice~**

Accelerator kept his eyes fixed on the map, depending on his peripheral vision to check for people in front or behind him. To his confusion, the map was quite inaccurate, showing streets where buildings where and alleyways where the waterways for the Venetian gondolas were.

Only once did he stop a local Italian and ask for directions to the specific street Izumi was on. The Italian stared at the esper with surprise and a little trepidation, telling the esper that the street did not exist in Venice and the supposed area it was rumoured to be in was a _very_ sketchy area.

Taken aback, the esper changed his question to ask about the general area. The shaken Italian man said that the area was like a ghost town, only inhabited by a few outcasts of society and 'people who practice sorcery.' Mentally sighing, Accelerator asked for directions to the area. The man said the area was on the outskirts of Venice, and then ran off in fear before Accelerator could say anything else.

"Tch. No wonder the map made any sense." Accelerator crumpled the map into a ball and tossed it towards the ground.

Shizuka caught the paper before it hit the ground and straightened it out. "The archbishop must have given us an older map of Venice."

"Let me take a closer look at it." Arin took the map and studied it for a second, before muttering a spell. The lines on the map shifted around until they finally settled down to reveal a completely different map. "Should've known she would have pulled a trick like this."

"What did she do to the map?" Accelerator took the map from Arin and looked at the now-accurate map.

"One sign of her love of antagonizing people of the opposite gender. She messed up the map so we'd get lost."

"That's not frivolous, that's plain annoying!"

"Whatever. The map's correct now, so we should be able to get to the outskirts of this town. I don't get why that man was so scared of the supposed 'ghost town'."

"Why are you surprised, Arin?"

"Italy is the base of the Roman Catholic Church. Well, it's actually the Vatican, but it's in Italy. Many magicians live in and outside of the Vatican, and many also live in major Italian cities. With this huge amount of magicians, there's simply no way regular humans can be kept unaware of magic."

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm saying that the regular humans in Italy are aware that magic exists. Although it seems like the majority of them are frightened by it, though. The very few that are unaware of magic must be the most frightened by any supernatural event. The area we're going to is most likely a place where many magicians live. We'd better be careful."

"Agreed."

"Oh, and don't bother asking for directions anymore, Accelerator. Regular Italians are sensitive enough to sense magic."

"Could have told me that earlier, you know."

"Sorry. Something's messing up my senses, so I forgot some major points about Italy."

"Something's messing up your senses?" Accelerator started walking again with fast strides, causing Shizuka and Arin go scramble after him to catch up.

"I think it's the archbishop again. 99% of the time, I don't know why she does what she does. Probably for her amusement. But for now, try not to rely on me."

The trio walked in silence for a while. Accelerator kept his eyes on the map, occasionally making turns here and there. Eventually, they reached the outskirts of Venice.

"Well, this looks like a nice place to live," Accelerator said sarcastically. "I see nothing but empty buildings."

"This whole place feels ominous. I sense a lot of magic. I think we're walking into a trap." Shizuka shivered slightly.

"There is a boundary around the area which cuts this place off from Venice. Stay on your guard once you go in. I have a feeling the residents aren't as welcoming as the Venetians to a trio of lost Japanese teens." Arin's eyes had started glowing a faint silver.

Without a second glance, Accelerator calmly walked outside of Venice. The moment he walked in, it felt like a sudden transition from day to night. The bright light of the afternoon sun was immediately blotted out by dark clouds. The light dimmed rapidly, until Accelerator couldn't even see his own hand. He paused to let his eyes adjust to the darkness, but he couldn't see a single thing.

Behind him, a bright silver light flared up, making him raise up an arm to shield his eyes. Once they adjusted, he saw a glowing Arin walk up to him and hold her hand out for the map. He handed it to her, and she led him and Shizuka ahead.

Along the way, they noticed numerous people lying on the ground, apparently dead. After a minute of silent debate, Arin went to the nearest dead body. Holding a hand over the dead man's head, she closed her eyes. _"Cognoso: Pietro di Angelo."_ Opening her eyes, she flashed a small ball of bloodred light around the man's body.

"What is she doing?"

Arin walked back to them. "Identifying the man and the cause of death. As you may have heard me, that man was Pietro di Angelo, cousin of Mathieu di Angelo. Cause of death: severed spinal cord. The cut was either made with a small knife or magic."

"Di Angelo, huh? Didn't the archbishop say Izumi left for Venice because he had something to settle with Mathieu?"

"True." Arin lightly tapped her foot on the ground. A thin layer of silver spread out in a wide around them, and swiftly disappeared. "I just did an area check. Every person in this place is dead, with the exact same cause of death."

"How...?"

"That's because I killed them," a tired voice said.

Shizuka turned around, a ball of fire ready in her hands. "Who are you?"

"Has my voice changed to the extent where you don't recognize me?" A thin, haggard figure stepped into the light of the fire ball Shizuka held.

"Izumi?" The fire disappeared from Shizuka's hands.

"In name, but definitely not in appearance or reputation."

"What happened to you?" Accelerator couldn't suppress his shock at the sight of the sickly-looking thin figure.

"Nothing much. My mana, or magic energy's been drained, that's all. Good to see you're alive, Accelerator." A faint smile flickered across the man's lips.

"What have you been doing and why did you disappear a few weeks ago?"

Izumi waved a dismissive hand. "Nothing you should worry about."

"At least answer this question: why did you disappear?"

"Because my work in Academy City was done. You may have thought I left out of grief and guilt. Yes, I grieved; yes, I felt guilty. Yet, my job was done, so I had no more ties to the city of science."

"And what exactly was your job?

"Tsukasa's last wish. Protect, guide, and teach Accelerator and Shizuka up until the battle with Lucifer."

"How did you know that was his last wish? He died before you saw him," Accelerator said blankly.

"I hired a medium not too long after I took you in. Tsukasa didn't say anything in his will, so I had to find out any unfinished wishes the magic way, as per my role as the living sibling. Now that I have finished the job, and had some free overtime, I can rest."

"Wait, Izumi. You don't mean...?"

The man nodded. "It's about time I left this earth and joined my brother."

"You-"

"Accelerator, I died a long time ago when my brother died. The only thing that kept me going was his last wish to keep you safe and teach you until the battle with Lucifer."

"I won't stop you if you really want that."

Izumi smiled slightly. "The reason I came here a while ago was to wipe out the last traces of Mathieu's family. I knew you survived, so I didn't choose to end my life earlier since I still wanted to talk with you."

"How did you know I was alive?"

"Once you entered battle, my visions of the future cleared up. I saw that you would have a hard battle, but in the end, you would live."

"Was there anything else you wanted to tell us?"

"No. Don't try to persuade me to do anything else." Izumi turned and left. Before he took a step, he turned back. His eyes shone with pride and some sorrow. "Accelerator. Shizuka. I'm proud of you. I'm sure your parents would have been proud as well. I really am happy that I got to teach you two."

"Izumi, thank you for everything you've done. Even if you're the one who erased our memories, you returned them to us and taught us what we needed to learn." Shizuka smiled at the older man.

Arin walked up to Izumi and had a brief exchange, during which Izumi handed Arin a black envelope.

Accelerator said nothing. After a minute, he opened his mouth. "Thank you for everything...Uncle Izumi.

A wide smile appeared on the man's face. "You don't know how happy I am to hear those words. Now I can finally rest in peace. Goodbye." Speaking a spell, a bright light broke through the darkness and shone down on the land, chasing away all the darkness that covered the area.

Turning his head, Accelerator managed to catch Izumi's final smile before the darkness was pulled towards the man's body. Izumi's body was consumed by the shadows, and the whole seething mass of black disappeared, along with the bodies of the other dead magicians.

The sun shone down on a ghost town. The buildings were crumbling, decrepit. Yet, the entire scene felt peaceful.

Accelerator turned around and started strolling back to Venice. "So, is this the end?"

"The end of a man who shaped your lives, yes. We still have to report to Laura and tell her Izumi died, so we couldn't bring him back."

Despite the loss of a close relative, none of them were sad. They knew the reasons behind what Satou Izumi had done, and accepted them.

Arin put her hands on Accelerator's and Shizuka's arms and they disappeared in a flash of silver light.

 **~Necessarius Base, England~**

This time, Arin had transported them right into the garden. Despite what they thought, only a few hours had passed. The sun had started to set, painting the sky gold.

Archbishop Laura Stuart looked up from her table in the garden, another cup of tea in her hands. Index was also with her, busy stuffing her mouth with food. She looked at the trio. "Oh? Welcome back. Where's Izumi?"

Accelerator's voice was void of emotion. "He's dead."

One of Laura's eyebrows lifted imperceptibly. "What happened?"

"He used up most of his mana to kill the magicians living outside of Venice, and used the last of it to destroy the bounded area the magicians had made outside of Venice. He said his tasks were completed and he had no more reason to live."

"I see." Laura pushed her teacup aside and brought a laptop onto the table, opening it and typing something. "I suppose I should change Satou Izumi-san's status to deceased, then."

"Is there anything else you want from us or can we go?" Accelerator's voice remained stoic. He hid his initial shock at Laura's calm dismissal of a major magician's death. It was almost if she had expected him to die.

"No. Thank you for the information. You may go now. Index, you may return to Academy City as well."

Index stood up, wiping off her mouth. She went over to the little group of three, and gave the archbishop a nod. With that, Arin led them out of the garden and a silver flash indicated that they had teleported back to Academy City.

Laura opened a video messaging app, contacting a certain man in Academy City.

 **~Back in Academy City~**

Arin first made a stop at Touma's apartment, dropping Index off, before teleporting herself, Accelerator and Shizuka outside of Yomikawa's apartment.

Accelerator unlocked the door and walked in, immediately grabbing a can of black coffee. Throwing himself onto the couch, he opened the can and started drinking it. Shizuka sat down beside him, while Arin stood behind her. Yoshikawa walked in sleepily, as it was the middle of the night. Yomikawa also came in, glancing at Accelerator.

After he finished the can, Accelerator spoke. "Where's the brat?"

"Sleeping on your bed. It is the middle of the night, you know."

"Tch. Looks like I have to sleep on the couch again."

"Where's Izumi?"

"Dead." Accelerator went to the kitchen and took out another can of coffee. Ignoring the looks of shock both women had on their faces, he opened the can and sipped it slowly.

Shizuka joined in the conversation, explaining everything to the women. The whole exchange took around 10 minutes. Silence fell upon the group after Shizuka finished; the only sound was from Accelerator idly twisting the empty cans with his ability.

After a while, Yoshikawa spoke. "Are there no chances of recovering his body?"

"No chances at all." Arin cut in before Shizuka spoke. "And I highly doubt we should hold a funeral."

Accelerator spoke. "At least get a memorial for him."

"I will handle that. Meanwhile, it's time to decide on the future." Arin held out the envelope Izumi had given her. "This is Izumi's will and one extra thing as well."

"Aren't you going to open it?"

"The will itself is indecipherable, sealed with a time-lapse spell I will not undo out of respect for Izumi's last wish. The extra thing is for Shizuka. It's from Tatemiya Saiji, substitute pontiff of the Amakusa Church and an old friend of your parents."

Shizuka opened the apparent letter Arin had given her. She frowned at the date. "This was written 19 years ago." Her eyes widened. "Before I was born?"

"Actually, that date was the day your parents got married. By then, they had already left the Amakusa Church. This was the pontiff's last message to them, specifically your father, before they cut themselves off completely from the world of magic. Read it."

Shizuka scanned the letter, reading it out loud.

 _Chihiro:_

 _I might as well start with congratulating you two. In my opinion, you, Chihiro, should have proposed earlier. Anyways, that is beside the point. I know you do not want anything to do with magic anymore, or anything to do with the Amakusa. It pains me to remember the day you announced that both of you were leaving magic behind and you would be renouncing the ancient Tsukiko bloodline, but I do understand your reasons for leaving._

 _If you ever tell your future kids that magic exists, they may be interested in learning. I know by then you will refuse to teach them anything or let them go down the path of a magician, so I have an offer for you._

 _If your children do want to learn magic, do not say no. When they are of age, they can choose to come here to the Amakusa to learn with us and learn about the ancient Tsukiko bloodline. This offer will stand until I perish, but even then, i think the others would accept your kids. Consider this the last few words of advice I will give you as an old friend and fellow magician,_

 _I hope you lead a good life with Hikaru. Goodbye, my friend._

 _Tatemiya Saiji_

Shizuka finished reading. "The offer still stands today, does it not?"

"You read the letter. They'll accept you."

Shizuka sat silently for a while, contemplating the offer. One side of her desperately wanted to go learn more magic and learn about her parents, but the other side wanted to stay in Academy City with her new-found family. Two voices speaking in unison broke her out of her thoughts,

"I think you should go." Accelerator and Yoshikawa stared at each other in disbelief before Accelerator clicked his tongue and looked away,

Shizuka looked disbelievingly at the researcher and the esper. "Who are you two and what have you done with the real Accelerator and the real Yoshikawa?"

Accelerator scoffed, "How was I supposed to know she'd say the same thing as I said? You should go learn with them. I know you really want to learn more about your parents and the different kinds of magic they use."

"Those were pretty much the exact same points I had in mind. Also, I doubt Aiho can keep you hidden any longer as a supposed unregistered esper. While your elemental abilities count as an esper ability, you are a pure magician with no ties to science. You should accept your bloodline."

"I guess I'll go."

Accelerator had a hint of a smirk on his pale face. "See you around in three years, then."

"Three?"

"That's for me to know and you to find out."

A new journey was about to start, with the end of another.

 **~Windowless Building~**

"So, is this the end of your little adventure with Accelerator?" Tsuchimikado Motoharu asked. "He's done far more than an average esper-or even a magician-these last few weeks."

"His life had piqued my interest ever since he was born," the General Superintendent said. "Quite a pity that Satou Izumi decided to end his own life and not mentor him anymore."

"One of Necessarius's best magicians gone. And the archbishop didn't even care."

"She told me earlier she knew he would have ended his own life sooner or later."

"Anyway, you didn't answer my earlier question."

"You should know the answer."

The multi-organization spy shrugged. "Did you really expect Michael and Lucifer to show up on the earth, no less Academy City?"

"I did not account for that happening, but as long Accelerator was able to defeat Mathieu, nothing would have affected my plans."

"As for Tsukiko Shizuka leaving?"

"She is a magician."

"Did you allow all this purely for your amusement?"

"Again, you should know the answer."

"Fair enough." Tsuchimikado walked away from the tube in which Aleister was floating, an unreadable look on his face. A teleporter appeared and transported the blond spy out of the building.

Aleister mused silently to himself. "It has ended for now, has it not? Perhaps I will allow Accelerator some years of peace in his life."

 **Aaaaaaaand Aleister gets the last word. Heh.**

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